KMAN Publication Inc. (KMANPUB) Journal of Adolescent and Youth Psychological Studies (JAYPS) 2981-2526 In Press 2026 12 01 Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Digital Native Identity Scale among Upper Secondary School Students in Tehran Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Digital Native Identity Scale among Upper Secondary School Students in Tehran 1 15 EN Journal Article 2026 04 15 <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> <p><strong>Objective:</strong> The present study aimed to develop and analyze the psychometric properties of the Digital Native Identity Scale among upper secondary school students in Tehran.</p> <p><strong>Methods and Materials: </strong>This study employed an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design and was conducted in two qualitative and quantitative phases. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 experts in educational sciences, psychology, sociology, and information technology. Thematic analysis was used to identify the dimensions and components of digital native identity, based on which a 21-item scale comprising six dimensions was developed. In the quantitative phase, data were collected from 402 students, including 206 girls and 196 boys, who were selected through multistage cluster sampling. The data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis, Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients, and the graded response model within the framework of item response theory.</p> <p><strong>Findings: </strong>The findings indicated that the six-factor model was confirmed with satisfactory goodness-of-fit indices (CFI = 0.942, TLI = 0.935, RMSEA = 0.054, and SRMR = 0.047), and all factor loadings ranged from 0.63 to 0.81. The reliability coefficients for the total scale (α = 0.91 and ω = 0.93) and the reliability coefficients for its dimensions, which ranged from 0.78 to 0.86, indicated excellent internal consistency. The graded response model analysis showed that 17 of the 21 items demonstrated an adequate fit to the model. The item discrimination parameters ranged from 1.56 to 2.12, indicating good to excellent discrimination. The information functions confirmed that the scale provided high levels of information across a broad range of the latent trait continuum. Differential item functioning analysis by gender showed that only one item exhibited minor DIF, indicating that the scale was essentially free from gender bias. Furthermore, comparison of the unidimensional and multidimensional item response theory models demonstrated the significant superiority of the multidimensional model.</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Based on the findings, the Digital Native Identity Scale possesses satisfactory validity, reliability, and measurement information and can be used as a valid instrument for assessing different dimensions of identity formation among Iranian adolescents.</p> https://journals.kmanpub.com/index.php/jayps/article/download/5849/11198