The Development of Global Coherence in Life Narratives across Adolescence: Temporal, Causal, and Thematic Aspects

Autor/inn/en	Habermas, Tilmann; de Silveira, Cybele
Titel	The Development of Global Coherence in Life Narratives across Adolescence: Temporal, Causal, and Thematic Aspects
Quelle	In: Developmental Psychology, 44 (2008) 3, S.707-721 (15 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0012-1649
DOI	10.1037/0012-1649.44.3.707
Schlagwörter	Age Differences; Rhetoric; Young Adults; Personal Narratives; Foreign Countries; Connected Discourse; Children; Adolescent Development; Biographies; Thinking Skills; Cognitive Processes; Self Concept; Intelligence; Interviews; Measures (Individuals) + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Age; Difference; Age difference; Altersunterschied; Rhetorik; Young adult; Junger Erwachsener; Erlebniserzählung; Ausland; Child; Kind; Kinder; Biography; Biografie; Biographie; Denkfähigkeit; Cognitive process; Kognitiver Prozess; Selbstkonzept; Intelligenz; Klugheit; Interviewing; Interviewtechnik; Messdaten
Abstract	Extending the study of autobiographical narratives to entire life narratives, we tested the emergence of globally coherent life narratives in adolescence, as hypothesized by McAdams (1985). Participants were 102 children and young adults (ages 8, 12, 16, and 20 years) who narrated their lives twice. Between narrations, half of each age group participated in tasks designed to train autobiographical reasoning; the other half participated in control tasks. Coherence was measured by the relative frequency of local temporal, causal, and thematic linguistic indicators identified qualitatively at the level of propositions, as well as by quantitative global rating scales measuring the impressions of the listeners. Coherence increased across the age span. Overall, repeated narrating and training did not increase coherence. Crystallized and fluid intelligence, number of negative life events, and frequency of biographical practices and confiding in others did not contribute substantially to the prediction of coherence beyond age. Results are interpreted in the context of adolescent identity development. (Contains 4 tables and 3 figures.) (Author).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10