# Age Patterns in Dual‐Cycle Identity Processes and Their Associations With Life Satisfaction

## TL;DR

This study explores how identity processes change with age and how they relate to life satisfaction across the adult lifespan in a large UK sample.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into age-related patterns in identity processes and their associations with life satisfaction in adulthood.

## Key findings

- Older individuals reported lower exploration scores until late adulthood.
- Commitment decreased from middle to late adulthood, while no differences were found between early and middle adulthood.
- Depth of commitment and exploration positively correlate with life satisfaction, while ruminative exploration negatively affects it, especially in later adulthood.

## Abstract

Identity development research often applies the identity status approach, which distinguishes different dimensions of identity‐relevant commitment levels and exploration behavior. However, age differences in these dimensions have mostly been examined in adolescence and young adulthood, leaving questions about their variation across the adult lifespan. Additionally, associations between identity and life satisfaction have been equally understudied in adult populations.

We examined these questions in a large, nationally representative U.K. sample (N = 3869; age range 18–97). Identity processes were measured using an abbreviated Dimensions of Identity Development Scale. After invariance testing by age groups, we examined age differences across identity dimensions: Commitment and Exploration (depth, breadth, ruminative).

Older individuals reported lower scores on all exploration dimensions until late adulthood. However, though no age differences in commitment were observed between early and middle adulthood, less commitment was reported from middle to late adulthood. Additionally, commitment and exploration in depth were consistently positively associated with life satisfaction, whereas ruminative exploration negatively predicted life satisfaction, with stronger associations appearing in later adulthood.

These findings demonstrate the feasibility of studying identity across adulthood from a measurement perspective and highlight how identity dimensions relate to well‐being at different ages.