Digital Identity Scale: A Validity and Reliability Study

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to develop a reliable and valid scale for measuring digital identity definitions, digital personalities, self-presentation strategies, communication styles in digital contexts, and digital identity perceptions of digital environment users over the age of 18. This study is significant since it is the first scale study on the subject of digital identity in Turkish literature, filling a gap in the field and creating a unique, reliable and valid scale. The process of developing this scale consists of many phases. First, in-depth interviews were conducted with 18 people and an item pool was created by reviewing literature and data obtained. Item numbers were reduced according to the view of experts. Expert opinions were obtained using the Lawshe method. Afterwards, the pilot study was applied to 278 participants for construct validity. Following this, the main study was conducted with 511 participants. After the data was collected, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were carried out. The scale’s validity and reliability was tested and approved. The result of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was a scale with 28 items and 3 factors. These findings are deemed important so that this scale can be considered a reliable and valid measurement tool.