The remaining chapters address four aspects of the transition to adulthood of young people leaving care: establishing self-identity; employment and economic independence; independent housing; and social participation, friends, family and social networking. Each chapter examines the experience of the young people in their transition to adulthood and leaving care against the child rights and social inclusion framework. Does the welfare institution support them during their childhood and teenage years to achieve social inclusion in their young adulthood and do they experience their rights to transition towards independent living in the same way as their peers in their communities? This chapter explores the self-identity, with reference to social inclusion, of the young people in care in their transition to adulthood and the possibility of independent living. It focuses on how the various aspects of social inclusion during childhood and young adult years might affect their identity.

Formation of identity

In addition to the usual dynamic identity formation of teenagers, young people leaving care also negotiate the shedding of an identity as someone in the care of the state and the acquiring of an identity as an independent young adult. These processes have important policy implications because they imply that transition to independence of children in state care requires a care approach and environment that are supportive to positive identity formation during childhood and adolescence (Anghel, 2011).

Identity crisis is a concept proposed by American psychologist Erikson (1968). In its simplest description, identity is the perception about who the self is, how the person fits in their community, what they will become in the future and how they become the person that they want to be. During teenage years, children's rapid physiological and emotional growth repositions them in relation to the adults in their lives as they explore new ways of expressing their independence. Their sense of identity changes in relation to these adults, their peers and other people around them. Is this the same for young people leaving care in China?

Erikson argues that the dynamic changes during teenage years can also affect adulthood if questions of identity are threatened. If they fail to reach satisfaction in their identity, they may continue to experience role confusion, affecting their future life.