title: Telling the Tale and Living Well: Adolescent Narrative Identity, Personality Traits, and Well-Being Across Cultures.
abstract: This study explored links between narrative identity, personality traits, and well-being for 263 adolescents (age 12-21) from three New Zealand cultures: Māori, Chinese, and European. Turning-point narratives were assessed for autobiographical reasoning (causal coherence), local thematic coherence, emotional expressivity, and topic. Across cultures, older adolescents with higher causal coherence reported better well-being. Younger adolescents with higher causal coherence instead reported poorer well-being. Personal development topics were positively linked to well-being for New Zealand European adolescents only, and thematic coherence was positively linked to well-being for Māori adolescents only. Negative expressivity, neuroticism, conscientiousness, and openness were also linked to well-being. Implications of these cultural similarities and differences are considered for theories of narrative identity, personality, and adolescent well-being.
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Elaine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Reese
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Ella
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Myftari
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Helena M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: McAnally
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Tia
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Neha
authors.affiliation: Cornell University.
authors.forename: Qi
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Fiona
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jack
authors.affiliation: University of Otago.
authors.forename: Sarah-Jane
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Robertson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People / Q000208:ethnology*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009520:New Zealand / Q000208:ethnology; D063545:Personal Narratives as Topic; D010551:Personality; D012933:Social Identification; D044465:White People / Q000208:ethnology*; D055815:Young Adult