The Promise of the Open Science Movement for Research on Identity

The study of identity development has changed a great deal in the last couple of decades. The purpose of this essay is to reflect on these changes, what they mean for the study of identity, and what they mean for the field moving forward. On the one hand, research on identity has greatly increased in depth, breadth, and rigor. On the other hand, however, current research practices in the field serve as a serious barrier to generating cumulative knowledge. The solution proposed for dealing with these challenges is to embrace the open science movement, which consists of a set of principles and behaviors that promote transparent, credible, reproducible, and accessible science. The four principles of transparency, credibility, reproducibility, and accessibility serve as a guide for understanding specific behaviors to implement, and thus improve research in the field. Supplemental material available at https://osf.io/mszjt.