The Influence of Social Media Use on the Development of Adolescent Self-Identity: A Literature Review

Abstract

Social media provides adolescents with opportunities to express interests, maintain friendships, and consider how they wish to be seen by others. Its relationship with self-identity development, however, varies across activities and identity outcomes. This review aims to examine how social media use relates to identity exploration, commitment, self-concept clarity, and identity distress. A structured narrative synthesis was developed from 15 relevant publications: 11 empirical studies and four reviews or theoretical analyses published between 2016 and 2025. Findings were compared according to online activity, identity outcome, study population, and social context. The evidence suggests that what adolescents do online is more informative than time spent online alone. Active self-presentation offers opportunities for identity exploration, while authentic presentation is associated with clearer self-concepts. Social comparison has mixed associations: it may prompt reconsideration of abilities and opinions, yet may also accompany identity distress. In a study of 177 British adolescents, different forms of Instagram comparison were associated with different identity processes. A study of 473 Chinese adolescents found that friendship quality statistically mediated the relationship between mobile social media use and self-identity. Indonesian studies further describe online self-representation and the negotiation of peer and cultural expectations. Overall, social media constitutes a context for identity development whose significance depends on adolescents’ activities, relationships, and existing sense of self. Because much of the evidence is observational, these associations should not be interpreted as causal effects. Longitudinal research is needed to establish how specific online experiences relate to identity change over time.