Affective orientations to the political

This chapter is the first of two discussion chapters, drawing on 494 questionnaires and 21 in-depth interviews with New Zealanders aged 16 to 18, to examine the internal factors shaping adolescent identity development online. Internal factors are defined as personal and interpersonal experiences of recognition and belonging, which orient young people towards or away from others and inform their identities and worldviews. The chapter shows how social media platforms function as key sites for belonging, relationship-building, and self-articulation, in ways that can both promote and hinder self-development. Themes emerging from survey and interview data include: social media adoption as a rite of passage; the importance of social media for fitting in and signalling autonomy; its affordances for affirmation, compensation, and mitigating loneliness; and its capacities for fostering recognition, shared values, and collective identity. The chapter also considers the risks of expressing unpopular opinions, including fear of rejection or cancellation. Analysis weaves together participant accounts and descriptive statistics to illustrate each theme in depth.