Ebaugh's four stages
Sociologist Helen Ebaugh described role exit as a four-stage process: first doubts, seeking alternatives, the turning point, and creating the ex-role.
Each stage carries its own emotional load. Many people get stuck not at the exit itself, but at 'creating the ex-role', answering the question of who they are now.
Implications for support
Effective transition support meets people at the stage they are in, not the stage we wish they were in.
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About the author
Gemma Gardner
Founder and Research Lead, AURIS Institute
Gemma Gardner leads the AURIS research programme on identity and occupational transition. Her work builds the evidence base behind the AURIS Framework and the Identity System, drawing on interviews with service leavers, families and the organisations that support them.
- Lead author, Identity Performance Psychology white paper series
- Principal investigator, AURIS identity adaptation interview programme
- Author of AURIS submissions on identity in occupational transition
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