Phenomenology and Intersectionality: Using PVEST as a Frame for Adolescent Identity Formation Amid Intersecting Ecological Systems of Inequality

Beginning with Erikson, identity formation has often been framed as a salient developmental challenge for adolescents. Recent theoretical advances situate this identity formation as a central life course process involving ecological and social context associated with diverse experiences and characteristics. Some scholars have employed intersectionality as a call to study experiences of individuals who belong to multiple marginalized groups. In this article, we argue that developmental research would be served by a return to Crenshaw's formulation of intersectionality—that is, that marginalization involves systematic inequality and interlocking systems of oppression—as integrated with Spencer's phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST). The latter was formulated as a needed critique of traditional developmental theories that generally ignored the problem of inequality as experienced through multiple layers of navigated contexts. Problematic ecological contexts can be understood through intersectionality's forefronting of complex structures and social positionality—that power dynamics and interconnected systems lead to differential outcomes within socially constructed categories like class, race, and gender. PVEST complements these insights through an attentiveness to phenomenological interpretations and responses—the “how” and “why” of the process. Therefore, we argue that adolescent outcomes should be understood both from the top and the bottom, including how youth interpret and cope with their vulnerability, based upon experiences of interlocking systems of oppression. The consequent synthesis should bolster the identification of pillar-like supports needed by youth and which afford effective assistance across respective socialization contexts.