The Relationship Between Presence in Virtual Space and Modern Identity

Presence in virtual space, whether for professional purposes or for recreation, whether continuously or intermittently leaves deep impacts on different aspects of identity and lifestyles, specifically on youth as the biggest virtual space audience. Internet users, depending on the objective and subjective structures of their surrounding environment, experience a wide variety of impacts. Drawing on an internet survey of 305 professional and recreational internet users and some qualitative interviews, the present paper aims at investigating the impacts of exposure to internet on youth's identity. The findings suggest that exposure to virtual space promotes the formation of modern identity, particularly on professional users. Similarly formation of a modern identity in turn depends on the level and type of consumption and the, vay users present and manage themselves on the net.