Identity Formation of Young-Adults Ultra-Orthodox in the Process of Changing Religiosity Level - the Contribution of the Family, Ethnic Group, Emotional Regulation and Support Systems

The ultra-Orthodox population in Israel has grown rapidly in recent years, reaching 1.28 million in 2022, constituting 13.3% of the total population. Their growth rate is the highest in Western societies, at about 4.2% per year. This growth is accompanied by a growing trend of integration of some segments of the ultra-Orthodox community into Israeli society. 

The current study examines the identity formation process of young ultra-Orthodox individuals (18-31) who have transitioned from a traditional ultra-Orthodox identity, as characterized by their family of origin, to a modern ultra-Orthodox identity. Specifically, the study investigates how levels of emotional regulation, perceived family support, perceived social support, and sense of community belonging contribute to the personal identity formation of these young adults.

Research Hypotheses:

1. A positive correlation will be found between support factors (parents, friends) and personal identity formation, such that the higher the level of support, the greater the identity formation process will be.
2. A positive correlation will be found between the young person's level of emotional regulation and personal identity formation, such that the higher the level of emotional regulation, the greater the identity formation will be.
3. Emotional regulation will moderate the relationship between support resources and the young person's level of personal identity formation, such that the higher the level of emotional regulation, the weaker the relationship between support resources and identity formation will be, and vice versa.

The research included a total of 157 young adults who grew up in traditional ultra-Orthodox society and have undergone processes of change in their religious identity in their adult lives, defining themselves as modern ultra-Orthodox today, participated in the study.

Findings:

The study findings indicate a positive relationship between support factors – family, social, and a sense of community belonging – and personal identity formation. The higher the level of support, the greater the identity formation will be. In this context, significant positive correlations were found between commitment to identity and family support, social support, and a sense of community belonging. Additionally, negative correlations were found between romantic exploration and family support, social support, and a sense of community belonging. It was also found that when family and social support are high, the tendency to suppress emotions is lower, and the higher the social support is, the higher the use of the reappraisal emotional regulation strategy will be. However, no relationship was found between a sense of community belonging and emotional regulation strategies.

Another finding shows that the more participants tend to use the reappraisal emotional regulation strategy and less the emotional suppression strategy, the higher their commitment to identity will be. Moreover, the more participants use emotional suppression, the higher the romantic exploration will be. However, no relationship was found between the reappraisal strategy and romantic exploration.

Finally, it was found that the relationship between social support and commitment to identity weakens as the use of the reappraisal strategy increases. In other words, the higher the level of emotional regulation, the weaker the relationship between social support and identity formation will be. In contrast, emotional regulation does not moderate the relationship between family support and a sense of community belonging and identity formation.

Contribution:

The study contributes theoretically to the understanding of identity formation processes among young adults who define themselves as modern ultra-Orthodox. On a practical level, the study contributes to the identification of variables that may be essential in interventions with this population, which is becoming an increasingly large segment of the ultra-Orthodox community in Israeli society.