Self-presentation strategies and narrative identity: A consideration of the linguistic and conceptual content of key scenes

Narrative identity is most often assessed via prompts for key autobiographical scenes (e.g., turning points). Here, self-presentation strategies were examined in relation to the content and structure of key scenes. Participants (N=396) provided narratives of life high points, low points, and turning points from within one of four assessment contexts and completed measures of self-deception positivity (SD) and impression management (IM). Narratives were coded for a series of linguistic (e.g., causation words) and conceptual (e.g., redemption) dimensions. Individual differences in IM corresponded with the linguistic and conceptual content of participants' low points. This effect was particularly evident among females (as compared to males) and the conceptual content of key scenes in conditions in which participants provided written (as compared to spoken) narrative accounts. These results carry implications for the assessment and analysis of narrative identity.