The Role of Instagram Social Network in Reproducing Religious Culture among Iranian Youth

The study has aimed to recognize the role of Instagram social network in the reproduction of religious culture among Iranian youth. To achieve this, the theory of social construction was chosen as the theoretical framework with an autonomous definition of religion and with reference to Giddens's views. The research method is applied in terms of purpose, and survey in terms of implementation. The statistical population of the current study was all 19-29 year olds in Tehran, Ardabil, Gorgan, Shiraz, and Kermanshah in 2019. The number of samples was determined based on Cochran's formula 384 people. The sampling method was multi-stage cluster sampling. Factor analysis and path analysis with the help of Amos software were used for statistical analysis of data. The findings suggested that the Instagram social network has a significant effect on the reproduction of religious culture among Iranian youth. In fact, based on Giddens and Tyler, it can be argued that the more people are active and involved on Instagram social network, and the more reflective this activity is, the more they contribute to the production of meaning, and therefore their religious culture is more likely to be influenced by this reflective atmosphere. However, the less active and involved people are on Instagram social network, and the less reflective this activity is, the less they contribute to the reproduction of meaning. Therefore, they take less influence from the Instagram social network and are more likely to keep their religious culture more traditional.