Definition of: identification

(ī·den′tə·fə·kā′shən) noun
1. The act or process of showing to be the same.
2. The state of being shown or proved to be identical.
3. Anything by which identity can be established.
4. Psychoanal. A process by which an individual, usually subconsciously, behaves or imagines himself behaving as if he were a person with whom he has formed an emotional tie.
5. The act or state of feeling sympathy for a fictitious or dramatic character, sometimes extending to projection of the image of the self into the character. See EMPATHY.