Qualitative Study of the Attitudes of Female Youths and Adolescents Adherent to South Korean Entertainment Industry Products

The present research was purposed to qualitatively study the female youths and adolescent’s attitude who were adherent to South Korean entertainment industry products. The statistical population subsumed the female youths and adolescents who were adherent to South Korean entertainment industry products in Tehran city. The sample until reaching theoretical saturation encompassed eleven female adolescents and youths aged 13 to 22 whom were selected via purposive sampling procedure. The research method was qualitative of contractual content analysis type and semi-structured interviews were used. The results of the research revealed that new media have become the cause of changes in identity building institutions and the media have changed the meaning-making factors of identity. The influence of the media in the formation of the identity and attitude of female youths and adolescents is significant in relation to the way their identity is influenced by the South Korean entertainment industry. Also, during exploratory interviews with the participants, 5 main themes and 24 sub-themes were extracted. The extracted themes included distance from the Iranian self and identity, critical attitude about the cultural, social, economic, and gender situation in Iran, idealism, imitation and feeling close to South Korean entertainment industry artists, lifestyle change, and group identity formation. The findings of this study could provide useful information to media policymakers, mental health professionals, and sociologists to be effective in forming the identity and attitude of young Iranian females.