ISSN 1671-3710
CN 11-4766/R
主办:中国科学院心理研究所
出版:科学出版社

›› 2011, Vol. 19 ›› Issue (3): 364-371.

• 研究前沿 • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Adolescents’ Identity Experiments: The Perspective of Internet Environment

CHAI Xiao-Yun;GONG Shao-Ying   

  1. School of Psychology, Huazhong Normal University; Hubei Human Development and Mental Health Key Laboratory, Wuhan 430079, China
  • Received:2010-07-11 Revised:1900-01-01 Online:2011-03-15 Published:2011-03-15
  • Contact: GONG Shao-Ying

Abstract: In the context of the Internet environment, “adolescents’ identity experiments” refers to a series of actions conducted via the internet whereby adolescents construct identity through self-representation and self-exploration. Many factors induce adolescents to carry out their identity experiments on the internet, such as the perceived advantages of online communication, adolescents’ personality, identity status, motivation and so on. Adolescents experiment with their identity in synchronous chatting, on social networking sites and through online games, all of which make significant contributions to their identity development. Future study should focus on adolescents’ identity experiments influenced by different internet environments as well as social comparison. Besides, it will be necessary to explore the deeper mechanisms of identity experiments via longitudinal and cross-cultural research.

Key words: adolescents, internet, identity experiments, self-representation, self-exploration