Investigating the Relationship between Media Literacy and Social Skills with the Mediation of Students' Critical Thinking

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and Educational Technology, Chabahar International University, Chabahar, Iran

2 Ph.D. in Curriculum Planning, Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

10.22091/jrim.2025.12101.1185

Abstract

Education plays an important role in increasing social skills. In this regard, the present study investigated the relationship between media literacy and social skills with the mediation of students' critical thinking skills. The research method was descriptive and correlational. The statistical population of the present study consisted of all first-year high school students in Iranshahr city in the academic year 1401-1402, from which 200 students were selected as the research sample using multi-stage cluster sampling. To collect data, Gresham and Elliott's (1990) social skills questionnaire, philosophical media literacy (2014) and Ricketts' (2003) critical thinking questionnaire were used. Data analysis was performed using correlation coefficients and structural equation modeling. The results of data analysis showed that there was a positive and significant relationship between media literacy and critical thinking with the total score of social skills and its components (P<0.05). The results of structural equation modeling also showed that the model had a good fit, and critical thinking played a mediating role in the relationship between media literacy and students' social skills (P<0.05). Based on the results of the present study, it can be seen that media literacy and critical thinking have significant direct and indirect effects on students' social skills and should be considered in educational programs.

Keywords


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