164: Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears about Technology Shape Children’s Lives

Dr Alicia Blum-Ross & Professor Sonia Livingstone, London School of Economics and Political Science (2020)

A summary of the results of a qualitative study examining parent perspectives on the risks and opportunities associated with digital media, how this relates to notions of being a ‘good parent’, and how children view and respond to their parents’ hopes, fears and values around digital media. In-depth interviews were conducted with 73 families in London in 2015 and 2016. This was supplemented with a nationally representative survey of 2,032 parents of children aged 0-17. Participants were recruited via an online panel, supplemented with a sample of low or non-internet users interviewed in-person. Participants were representative by region across the UK, ethnic background, socio-economic status (SES), gender, and inclusion of parents with low or no internet use. The data were collected in 2017.