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Advances in Identity Theory and Research, edited by Peter J. Burke, Timothy J. Owens, Richard T. Serpe, and Peggy A. Thoits. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 2003. 235 pp. $108.00 cloth. ISBN: 0-306-47741-6. $54.00 paper. ISBN: 0-306-47851-X.
Identity theory is among the most influential social psychological theories of the self and social action. In recognition of the theory's founder, Sheldon Stryker, his colleagues convened a conference at Indiana University in 2001 to share emerging work within identity theory. This volume, organized into four sections, resulted from the conference. Together, the papers demonstrate the promise of identity theory to continue to stimulate research and generate insight on the self and social action. The volume is an essential read for identity theorists, but is also likely to be of interest to scholars of the self, social interaction, and the relation of the self to social systems.
The volume is framed by Burke's outstanding Introduction, which concisely summarizes identity theory and its contributions to social psychology, and Stryker's closing chapter, which presents his thoughtful reflections on the papers in the volume and unaddressed issues relevant to identity theory research. The first section (Sources of Identity) begins with McCall's compelling argument that an actor's identity reflects not only who an actor is (the traditional focus of identity theory), but also who that actor is not (a dimension neglected by identity theory). Next, Kiecolt and LoMascolo explore how interactional and affective commitment (i.e., respectively, the number of others to whom one is tied...