there is increasing uncertainty about identity in contemporary society

Identity, or rather identities as each individual has more then one identity, is an active engagement by every one of us, identifying with a group. It is the product and a link of and to the society we live in and our relationship with others.

Identity is formed by similarity and differences of people (us and them), often visualized by symbols like clothing, badges, languages and many more. We actively adopted identities as individuals and groups. Some of your identities are fixed like gender which is influenced from a very early stage on in our lives as like others are more fluent and change over time.
The society we live in, the relationships and interaction with the people around us form, influence and change our identities and as society changes over time, so do some of our identities with it.

The main argument of increasing uncertainty about identity in contemporary society is the erosion of class identity or the increasing uncertainty of who we are.
The booming economy of the early 1960s increased the wealth and possibilities of the working-class. But instead of adopting values and lifestyles of the middles-class, as widely argued at the time, the working-class identity fragmented and a ‘new’ working-class, where actual work played a smaller role and family and home became more important, developed (Goldthrope et al., 1969, study of attitudes and class identity among car workers at Vauxhall’s Luton car plant). A shift from collective identities towards individual identities and from occupation to more consumption orientated patterns occurred.
Before, class was about belonging, symbols and stability. The general feeling was about being part of a community with a collective identity.
Now, consumption processes and changes in lifestyle replaced the traditional occupation-based class in constructing identities (Saunders, 1984).
Both factors, increasing prosperity through a booming economy and decades later less security about employment because of unstable labour markets and globalization, lead to individualization, change and more uncertainty by diversity. More choice through wealth and power or the creation of new jobs and elimination of old ones, the search for work and day to day survival leads people on to their own journey and to form their image more around consumption and lifestyle.

Another argument is that inequality of incomes and wealth influences people’s identities and behaviours. Wealth and power are sources of class distinctions. As the income distribution in the UK is highly unequal and has been becoming more so, the influence and change is even increasing because the smaller the income, the more it is experienced as a structural constraint and increasing uncertainty about the own identity. Well over half the UK population lives below average income now, reducing the size of the middle-class which is important as a stabilizing factor in a society (Rademacher F.J. 2002).

Also the constant shift and change of gender identities with time and between cultures plays an important part in a multi cultural society as the UK, as gender is a key dimension of identity. The male breadwinner finds himself in a different, changed position now, then some years before. A significantly higher number of women are in paid employment and he has to cope with new family structures and roles. Also the recent female success in public exams in previously male dominated areas suggests change and uncertainty, even possible change in stereotypical thinking.

These arguments lead to change in the social structure itself and are able to open up space for redefinitions of identities. For example in the context of race and ethnicity, less powerful groups seek to improve their social position, changing their identity. That change unsettles and destabilizes established ideas and racialized (the dynamic processes that make ‘race’ socially, economically and psychologically significant) identities become more uncertain.

All the above mentioned arguments show us change in our society and therefore challenging and changing our identities.
Some identities are redefined, some disappear and others are created. That effect produces uncertainty. We live in a time of change. The information and communication technology revolution moves every body and every thing closer together, interacting, creating diversity, and speeding every thing up which leads to an increasing demand for flexibility. The constant demand for change makes identities less secure, less durable and more fluid, constantly re-reacting and re-defining them, making them more uncertain in the contemporary society.
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References
Goldthorpe, J., Lockwood, D., Bechhoffer, F. and Platt, J. (1969) The Affluent Worker: Industrial Attitudes and Behaviour, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Saunders, P. (1984) ‘Beyond housing classes: the sociological significance of private property rights in means of consumption’, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, vol.8, no.2, pp.202-27.
Rademacher, F.J. (2002) ‘Ökosoziale Marktwirtschaft als Schlüssel zu einer weltweiten nachhaltigen Entwicklung’, Balance oder Zerstörung, Ökosoziales Forum, Wien, Austria