Seventeenth International Conference on Technology, Knowledge, and Society

Abstract

The widespread proliferation and ease of access to various forms of new media are shaping the way young people communicate, form, and express their identities. The purpose of my paper is to showcase new ways of understanding, being and doing identity work with Greek migrant youths living in a global digital world. Inspired by my first-hand experience of migrating from Greece to Australia, my research design combines a/r/tographic approaches with participatory narrative inquiry. Much of my study’s conceptual framework is built upon Bakhtin’s theories about how an individual develops a sense of self through the other, that is, through sharing experiences, language and dialogue. Visual and verbal narratives collected in the research will describe how Greek migrant youths considered their identities through the guise of others who also migrated to Australia in the last decade. The study reveals some valuable ways the digital space, specifically new media, can be used as a tool for cultural sustainability for Greek migrant youths exploring their sense of self and belonging whilst living in Melbourne.