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Article

Experiencing the COVID-19 Emergency: Age-Related Disequilibrating Event for Identity

Department of Humanities, University of Federico II, 80138 Napoli, Italy
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Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 15708; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315708
Submission received: 31 August 2022 / Revised: 12 November 2022 / Accepted: 19 November 2022 / Published: 25 November 2022

Abstract

The experience linked to the COVID-19 emergency constituted a turning point in the biography of most Italians. The suspension of usual activities, the redefinition of life contexts and the restriction of relationships have opened up wide spaces and time for thinking and reflecting on oneself, which may have triggered processes of redefinition of personal identity. The general aim of this study was to explore the impact of pandemic on daily life in the life span, in order to support the hypothesis that the pandemic experience could be considered a disequilibrating life-event and a turning point in the biography of most Italians. A mixed research approach was adopted, with 14 closed and open questions created ad hoc. 41 participants (87% women, average age 40.71), resident in the Campania region, in southern Italy, responded to the online written interview. The data were analyzed by two independent coders, using categorical content analysis with a top-down approach. Membership of the different age groups (young adults, adults, elderly) was assessed as a comparison variable. Findings qualify pandemic-related experiences as a disequilibrating life event, potentially capable of activating, alongside emotionally dense experiences, adaptive and functional resources for identity reconsideration, with differences being age based. The dimensions of change, the affective dimensions, the resources and the areas of risk identified, allowed us to identify three different clusters, showing a differentiation according to age groups, which identifies young adults and the elderly as the subjects most at risk.
Keywords: COVID-19; identity changes; resources; risk factors; Italian lockdown; categorical content analysis; top-down approach COVID-19; identity changes; resources; risk factors; Italian lockdown; categorical content analysis; top-down approach

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MDPI and ACS Style

Di Palma, T.; Fusco, L.; Sica, L.S.; Aleni Sestito, L. Experiencing the COVID-19 Emergency: Age-Related Disequilibrating Event for Identity. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 15708. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315708

AMA Style

Di Palma T, Fusco L, Sica LS, Aleni Sestito L. Experiencing the COVID-19 Emergency: Age-Related Disequilibrating Event for Identity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(23):15708. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315708

Chicago/Turabian Style

Di Palma, Tiziana, Luca Fusco, Luigia Simona Sica, and Laura Aleni Sestito. 2022. "Experiencing the COVID-19 Emergency: Age-Related Disequilibrating Event for Identity" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 23: 15708. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315708

APA Style

Di Palma, T., Fusco, L., Sica, L. S., & Aleni Sestito, L. (2022). Experiencing the COVID-19 Emergency: Age-Related Disequilibrating Event for Identity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(23), 15708. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315708

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