'You have a friend request'; The role of virtual social networks in identity exploration

The information age is upon us and virtual reality with its instant access to information and connection is a context in which our youth are spending vast amounts of time. This phenomenon is increasingly important as it heralds a contextual shift in the modern experience. This study investigated how adolescents use the new context of a virtual reality and their virtual social network to explore and form identity. Several theories of identity development processes have been posited and this study sought to confirm if adolescents are using known processes in this new context. Findings indicate that, individuals who are diffused and passive in exploration tend to be heavier users of social network sites (SNS), like Facebook. The majority of the sample reported some traditional identity exploring behaviors on their SNS, but contrary to early findings, there appears to be no significant traditional identity exploration happening on SNS. Keywords: identity, adolescent development, virtual networks, context...