My research looks at identity, broadly defined; its rootedness in social and cultural contexts; and its effects on psychosocial, behavioral, and health outcomes. Specifically, I am interested in personal, cultural, ethnic, religious, sexual, social, and national identity, among others. I am also interested in the ways in which these aspects of identity can influence positive (e.g., well-being) and negative (distress, behavior problems, drug/alcohol use, and impaired driving) outcomes in adolescence and young adulthood. I also examine the ways in which various aspects of identity mediate the effects of family functioning and other social-contextual processes on positive and negative outcomes. In particular, I'm interested in acculturation as a form of cultural identity change, and in the effects of culture change on identity processes.

Along with Koen Luyckx at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, and Viv Vignoles at the University of Sussex, UK, I am co-editing the upcoming Handbook of Identity Theory and Research. We will integrate at least 7-8 streams of identity-related theory and research, including personal, social, ethnic, cultural, sexual, gender, vocational, national, and civic identity. The book brings together perspectives on identity from developmental and social psychology, from sociology, from anthropology, from literature and humanities, and from historical studies.