Parents’ digital competence in guiding and supervising young children's use of the Internet

Abstract

Children use the Internet at an increasingly younger age and many parents do not have the necessary knowledge to protect or guide them. A previous study showed that 78% of children between the ages of 6 and 9 used the Internet and that their parents were usually with them, but 40% of these children would surf at some point without supervision. This research aims to examine the relationship between the parents' digital competence and the different elements included in the parental mediation process. The sample is made up of 1827 parents who answered the survey. A relationship is observed between the parents' level of education and their digital competence. The results show that for parents with greater digital competence it is more likely that their 6-to 9-year-olds are already surfing the Internet. They also supervise more frequently and have more knowledge of the online activities that their children carry out.