What do parents really know about their child’s online behaviour? Discrepancies between parents and their children in Israel

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study examined the discrepancies between the perceptions of fathers, mothers and children’s perceptions regarding internet use mediation strategies (enabling and restrictive) and their relations with child disclosure. Fifty families participated in the study (father, mother, and child). It was found that there were discrepancies between children’s perception of their parents’ restrictive and enabling mediation strategies, and their parents’ reporting of those mediation strategies. Child disclosure of his/her browsing experiences with the mother was positively related with her use of both restrictive and enabling mediation strategies, but not with the father’s use of these strategies, nor for mother–father discrepancies. This study makes an important contribution by measuring all three members of the triad and explores the family unit and its implication on children’s disclosure. IMPACT SUMMARY Prior State of Knowledge: Most of the research on mediation strategies has focused on mothers’ behaviours, with most data gathered either by child or mother reports. This ignores the role of the father. Novel Contributions: We relied on both parents and their child to report on mediation strategies, the discrepancies between the parents and examine how those discrepancies explain the extent to which their child discloses his/her browsing experiences. Practical Implications: The ability to disclose difficulties may be a primary resource for the ability to benefit from social support at times of need. It is of great importance for the children to share their experiences with their parents.