A type of mental disorder that affects young people, in which the child is unable to mesh the various aspects of self into a coherent and acceptable identity (called borderline personality disorder if it persists into adulthood). Though many people have uncertainties about such questions as long-term goals, sexual orientation, religious and moral beliefs, and social relations with friends and groups, adolescents with identity disorder are so uncertain that they experience anxiety and depression. Some become almost immobilized as a result, often with harm to their everyday functioning at home and school, while others experiment impulsively.