In this essay, the concepts of sensitive periods and critical periods will be discussed and critically evaluated in relation to the identity development of South Africans. In doing so, the historical context of South Africa should also be taken into consideration. The period of adolescence is when the individual undergoes a set of physical and psychological changes, called the adolescent years, and begins their progression towards adulthood. In other words, the individual achieves psychological maturity and social maturity (Mwale, 2010). Due to the historical context of apartheid in South Africa, adolescence in South Africa and the identity development of nationals must be carefully analyzed following such incidents. In my opinion, adolescence is a sensitive period and not a critical period for identity development in South Africa. South Africans. Critical periods involve the notion of a significant event in a person's life that occurs at a specific point in development (Papalia et al, 1998). But to answer the question of whether adolescence is a critical or sensitive period for identity development in South Africa, one must also examine the variety of different definitions of critical and sensitive periods. For example, critical periods may also be “…a certain type of experience at one point in development has a profoundly different impact on future behavior than having the same experience at any other point in development (Bruer, 2001). Both of these definitions refer to specific events in a person's life that impact their development. Due to this ambiguity, it can certainly be argued that adolescence is a sensitive period and not a critical period for the identity of South Africans. That said, I would like to...... middle of paper ...... Ausal interpretations. Psychological Bulletin, 105(2), 179-197. Bruer, J. T. (2001). An introduction to critical and sensitive periods. In D. B. Bailey, J. T. Bruer, F. J. Symons, and J. W. Lichtman (Eds), Critical Thinking about Critical Periods. (pp. 3-26). Baltimore: Brookes. Norris, SA, Roeser, RW, Richter, LM, Lewin, N., Fleetwood, SA, Taole, E. and van de Wolf, K. (2008). South African identity among adolescents. The emergence of a collective identity within the Chort study from birth to twenty years. Journal of Early Adolescence, 28 (1), 51-69. The Research Cooperative http://researchcooperative.org/profiles/blogs/adolescence-and-adolescent Thom, DP & Coetzee, CS (2004). Identity development of South African adolescents in a democratic society. Society in Transition, 35 (1), 183-193. Papalia, DE, Olds, SW, & Feldman, RD (1998). Human development. 7th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill.