Espelhos digitais: ambivalências das mídias na construção da identidade de adolescentes

Abstract

The increasing use of digital media has influenced adolescent experience, especially regarding psychological development and identity construction. In this sense, the objective of this work was to analyze how digital media influences the identity construction process of adolescents, through an integrative literature review. The descriptors "adolescent," "digital media," and "identity" were searched in the Google Scholar, SciELO, and PubMed databases, resulting in 157 identified articles. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, seven studies composed the final sample. The findings indicate that digital media function as spaces for identity exploration, belonging, and self-expression, allowing adolescents to experiment with social roles and build interpersonal connections. However, effects related to exposure, social comparison, and aesthetic pressure were also observed, including body dissatisfaction, anxiety, low self-esteem, and the search for social validation. Overall, the results suggest that digital media exert an ambivalent influence on adolescent identity, acting both as a developmental context and as a potential risk factor, depending on patterns of use and psychosocial conditions.