The YouTube Effect on Adolescence: Exploring the Influences of Youtubers on Adolescents’ Identity Construction

Abstract

The present study investigated the influence of YouTubers on adolescents’ identity construction by exploring interactions between YouTubers and adolescents. Towards this goal, this study intended to understand the YouTubers’ role in adolescents’ lives in terms of mindset and daily practices. In this qualitative research, the data was collected from 10 adolescents through semi-structured interviews in order to get in-depth information about the identity experiences of adolescents. The data were analyzed through the interpretative phenomenological analysis method. The results of the study revealed that YouTubers guided adolescents to become integrated into the society by noticing the similar aspects of their identities such as feelings, thoughts, and beliefs. On the other hand, YouTubers have been found to assist adolescents to discover their individuality through their videos and comments of other viewers on these videos. Also, it has been observed that the exploration option and range of social interactions extended thanks to YouTubers. However, adolescents sometimes overly identified themselves with YouTubers, imitated them and implemented YouTubers’ recommendations without questioning. As a result, the practical implications for parents, counselors, and authorities are discussed.