A Research On 'ChengXin' Identity Development Of Grade 2-8 Students

"Chengxin" in Chinese is a significant concept which embodies three main meanings:honest,credible and sincere(Jiang Yiwen,2006).This research attempts to investigate how primary and middle school students internalize the rules of' Chengxin' into the essential part of self-identity during the process of development.In the present study,the emotions involved in moral action were emphasized as an index to explore the development of "Chengxin" identity. Self report test and context projective test were used to investigate the developmental tendency of "chengxin" identity.And interviews based on dilemma questions were introduced to examine the individuals' internal need and the influence of social-others to explore the position of "Chengxin" in individual's identity.The results indicated that as children grow,more negative emotions were aroused with "non-Chengxin" behaviors and more positive emotions were accompanied with "Chengxin" behaviors.Also,self-attribution tendency and interpersonal consideration affect the relationship between moral action and relevant emotion.The research also found that the important social-others played different role in different stage.For students of Grade2-5,parents,the favorite teacher and classmates positively functioned as a identification resources.For older students,best friends may be the most important role to identify.The findings also showed that "Chengxin" identity developed from interpersonal interaction.It is a process that individual internalized the rules of "Chengxin" to center it in the self-identity system.For Grade 2 students,parents and teachers play as authorities to determine what kind of behavior is acceptable."Chengxin" position is subject to "To-be-a-Good-Child" position.For students of Grade3,4,5,the sense of competition emerges and children of this age tender to surpass peers to gain social praise from authorities.For Grade 6,7 students,they regard others' assessment about themselves as important,and try to act to be perfect from other's eyes.For Grade 8 students,they emphasize individual's sense of responsibility for their own behavior and thought.The conscientiousness emerges,so that individuals of this age not only believed they are responsible for their own development but also for the ones around him.