New Media and the Challenges of Social Identity among Students (Case Study: High School Students of Shiraz)

Technological developments and the diffusion of media contents during the past couple of decades have brought about massive and profound changes that some social thinkers have claimed that a new society based on media has emerged. These media have affected all aspects of social life, among the most important is the arena of identity. Among these media, satellite television and the Internet have attracted much attention by the youth. The present article aims to study the effects that these media have on the social identity of high school students in the city of Shiraz. 280 students were selected as the sample, using quota sampling technique. The results showed that a reverse association existed between the two variables, that is to say, that an increase in media usage would result in a decline in commitment of social identity among the students.