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Comunicar Journal 65: Emerging mixed methods in social research: The digital challenge (Vol. 28 - 2020)

Online parental mediation strategies in family contexts of Spain

https://doi.org/10.3916/C65-2020-06

Gemma Martínez

Miguel-Ángel Casado

Carmelo Garitaonandia

Abstract

This article explores online parental mediation strategies in Spain and their association with sociodemographic and family context factors. The results of a survey conducted at the end of 2018 are presented herein, based on a sample of 2,900 Spanish minors between 9 and 17 years of age who use Internet. The impact of the diverse parental mediation strategies applied to Internet use has been calculated by taking into account the sociodemographic factors of the participating minors (age and gender). Association analysis was performed using the SPSS statistical analysis programme. In this case, an extra analysis was carried out with regard to the relationship of influence between different strategies and the rules of behaviour and family support in the household context as perceived by the minor. Findings suggest that enabling and restrictive mediation strategies are very common in Spanish families, while technical mediation strategies have a very limited presence. It is noteworthy that restrictions and security strategies generally apply more to girls than to boys. Household rules related to the behaviour of minors have a positive correlation with an increase of influence of nearly all strategies. However, there is no relevant association between family support perceived by children and restrictive strategies and techniques applied by parents.

Keywords

Internet, mediation, strategies, behavior, family, children, parents, intervention

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