Psychometric properties of the Italian version of the 6-Item identity bubble reinforcement scale (IBRS-6)

Social media, a cornerstone in the lives of early adolescents, facilitates processes such as self-disclosure, fostering peer relationships and identity definition. Early access to social media requires an examination of its impact on psychosocial dynamics and psychological well-being in early adolescence. Social media limits the diversity of social contacts and leads to the formation of “psychosocial bubbles” which, according to the Identity Bubble Reinforcement Model (Keipi et al. 2017), encourages people to build relationships with like-minded people and trust the information shared in their social network more. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of a new Italian translation of the 6-item Identity Bubble Reinforcement Scale (Kaakinen et al. 2020) in a sample of early adolescents. Middle school students (N = 560) completed an online survey including sociodemographic and internet-related information, the IBRS-6, the Preference for Online Social Interaction (POSI), number of social media profiles, time spent on social media and the Digital Ecology Scale. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the three-factorial structure (Social Identification, Homophily, Information Bias) with good fit. Internal consistency was good for total scale and subscales. Correlation analyses showed convergent validity with the POSI, number of social media profiles, and time spent on social media and good criterion validity with the Digital Ecology Scale. The IBRS-6 is the first brief instrument for identifying Identity Bubble factors (Kaakinen et al. 2020) among early adolescents in Italy. The factorial structure and validity reported in other cultural contexts were confirmed; moreover, findings add evidence to the scale’s criterion validity. In addition to its role in measuring aspects of identity formation during adolescence, predicting health outcomes and online risk behaviors, and guiding primary prevention interventions in early secondary school settings, the IBRS-6 will also support international comparability in examining the dynamics of identity bubble phenomena across diverse populations and cultural contexts.