In an era where technology shapes nearly every facet of daily life, a recent study underscores the critical need for parents to actively engage in developing digital literacy skills, both for their children and themselves. The study highlights the growing significance of understanding digital landscapes, particularly in the context of increasingly complex social media algorithms.
The research, which investigated the perspectives and behaviors of 30 parents raising children aged 0 to 18 in England, unveiled compelling insights into the challenges parents face in navigating the digital world. One of the central findings of the study was the profound impact of social media algorithms on children's online experiences.
Professor Ranjana Das, a leading investigator of the study and Professor of Media and Communication at the University of Surrey, commented, "Parents engage with so many platforms in the course of their day-to-day parenting. We wanted to see how they make sense of and interact with the algorithms responsible for serving themselves and their children with the content on those platforms."
The study identified four distinct patterns in how parents perceive and interact with social media algorithms:
Some parents held mistaken assumptions about how algorithms functioned. For instance, one parent struggled to comprehend YouTube's content recommendations, erroneously linking them to subscriptions.
A significant number of parents were aware of algorithms but felt that concerns regarding their impact could be deferred until their child was older, categorizing it as a 'future issue.'
Transactional Understandings: Certain parents accepted algorithms' influence as an inherent part of modern life. While they employed child filters, they also resigned themselves to the role algorithms played in their children's online experiences.
Proactive Understandings: A proactive group of parents took immediate action to address algorithmic impacts. For instance, one parent in the study actively monitored YouTube recommendations for their child to identify and flag inappropriate content.
Professor Das continued, "We want our findings to help policymakers devise strategies to promote better data and digital literacies among the adult population. We want to shift the focus away from parental blame. We need to find ways to support parents, carers, and families to navigate and negotiate a data-driven world."
The study's comprehensive findings, available in the Journal of Children and Media, offer a stark reminder of the evolving digital landscape and the critical role parents play in equipping themselves and their children with the necessary digital literacy skills to thrive in this technology-driven era. As society continues to grapple with the challenges of the digital age, the study serves as a call to action, urging parents to embrace digital literacy as an essential component of modern parenting.