جامعه شناسی کاربردی (May 2015)
A Study of Social Reflexivity among Youths in City of Yazd
Abstract
 Introduction  Living in a modern and global age has many crucial consequences for contemporary social actors. Transnational society or global culture is considered as a consequence of the modernization process, with a dynamic and mobile base, which is reflexivity in social life. Social life is encompassed with this fact that individuals' functions become continuously evaluated, modifying by fresh data, and the elements become fundamentally changed. Reflexivity about self and various aspects of life as well as choosing among different alternatives is an opportunity that modern society offers to people. Therefore, in modern society, humans review continuously their self as how, and what it should be. Reflexivity is a process of self-definition and redefinition by observing and focusing on information about possible ways of life. Reflexivity is a mechanism in human thinking and behavior which sets human action and controls it, of course, this mechanism is different in traditional culture in comparison to modern culture. This paper addresses reflexivity and the related factors among young citizens of Yazd city.    Materials and Methods  The research Approach used in the study was quantitative and the method was survey, with an analytical and descriptive goal. Data was collected by using researcher-designed questionnaire. Sample size was determined to be 384 cases, using Cochran's sample size formula. Multiple cluster sampling was used to sample, dividing the city into different areas of north, south and center area. Research validity is formal validity in which the items were evaluated by sociology professors. The reliability of the scale was evaluated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient which showed that the items are in an internal correlation with each other. The data was analyzed in SPSS software.    Discussion of Results & Conclusions  According to descriptive results, the Mean of reflexivity among respondents was 19/16 which is above of the scale mean (15). Most of respondents had a modest reflexivity ratio. Results showed that it is not significantly different between men and women. But there is a significant relationship between education and income with reflexivity. Mass media and cultural globalization with reflexivity are in a direct relationship, that is, as use of mass media is increased, the ratio of reflexivity increases too. There is a significant relationship between religiosity and reflexivity. Multivariate regression results showed that cultural globalization and religiosity are the most important predictors of reflexivity. These two variables alone explained 17 percent variance of reflexivity variable.  Generally, with respect to research results it can be said that Iranian society is a changing society and is experiencing fast changes in different aspects. This change, which has been accompanied by current structural and cultural transformations in a global scale, have led to a pluralism in the youths' social world life and consequently have formed new attitudes and values among them. One consequence of this situation is the formation and growth of a special kind of personal identity, which has reflexivity at its core. Information and communicative technologies have led people in different areas of the world to become more informed about different lifestyles, values and behavioral norms. The result of this process is the creation of new identities among youth.    Keywords: .
