Definition of "self-identification" [self-identification]

• Identification of oneself with another person or thing. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Catholics are also a major share of the religious population, but they are more easily recognized through self-identification, since their denomination, religious tradition, and self-identity are all one and the same."
• "Jews and Mormons20 can also be easily recognized through self-identification."
• "Whether downsized, laid off, fired or berated in a public battle carried out across the television, radio, tabloids and the Web, any person who has ever faced the misfortune of losing a job has also had to deal with the loss of self-esteem and self-identification that it brings."