An Analysis of the Impact of New Media on the Soft Power of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Emphasizing the Comparison of National and Religious Cultural Identities in Men and Women)

Abstract

With the birth of new media, the modern age has been an achievement for the revolution in terms of information and communication, which has coincided with the collapse of old structures and the emergence of signs of post-structuralism, structural change and post-modernism. As a result, the perception of concepts and meanings of social and individual phenomena has undergone dramatic changes, and the function and concept of culture, identity and power has also undergone a paradigm shift. The present study examines and compares the consequences of using new communication media on the national cultural identity and religious cultural identity of the citizens of Ahvaz. The statistical population of the study included citizens aged 16-50 years. The sample size included 600 people selected based on cluster sampling method. The research method was based on a descriptive-analytical method and the research data were analyzed using independent group t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed that new media have an impact on national cultural identity and religious cultural identity, and there is a statistically significant difference between men and women in religious cultural identity at a level of p < 0.05. But there was no difference in national cultural identity between men and women. There was also no difference between religious cultural identity and national cultural identity and income level of citizens.