Review of Relationship between Media Consumption and National Identity from Viewpoint of 15-29 Years Old Youths of Yazd City in 1394 (2015/16)

National identity in every society depends on its constructive dimensions and its status. One of the factors effective on the national identity of each society is the media. The media can affect the personality of each individual and change individual identity and consequently the collectiveidentity and create a new identity. This study has been conducted with the aim of identifying the relationship between the media usage and national identity of the youth and to this end has utilized the ‘use and gratification’ and ‘cultivation’ theories in the theoretical section of the research. Using survey method, the study has conducted research on 383 youths of 15 to 29 years of age in Yazd city. For a more precise examination, the media have been divided into two kinds of mass media ad social media. Questionnaires have been used as data collecting instruments of the research. The validity of the data collection means was conclusive and Cronbach's Coefficient Alpha was used to assess its reliability. The data was analyzed using SPSS software at descriptive and inferential levels. The findings of data analysis have shown that the respondents use social media more than the mass media and telegram was the most used among the virtual social networks. A negative and significant correlation was witnessed between the usage of social media and religious and cultural identity of the youth while the relationship between the usage of the mass media and religious and cultural identity was not significant. Also, the relationship between social dimension of national identity and the extent of mass media usage and social media was not significant. The results of testing the main hypothesis of the research indicate that there is no significant relationship between the extent of mass media usage and national identity but a negative and significant relationship between the extent of social media usage and national identity of the Yazd city youths.