Exploring the associations between coparenting alliance,parental sense of competence,and reported screen use culture: Screen time,co-viewing,and behaviors in preschool children in Greece

Abstract

The aim of this pilot, exploratory study was to investigate the relationship between reported screen use practices among preschoolers, including screen time and co-viewing, and parenting dimensions such as coparenting alliance and parental sense of competence, along with child’s behaviors (prosocial, externalizing and internalizing). Data were collected online from 403 parents between November 2023 and June 2024, using demographic measures and psychometric scales: the Parenting Alliance Inventory (PAI), the Parental Sense of Competence Scale (PSOC), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The findings suggest that a stronger coparenting alliance is associated with multiple variables in the study, including parental competence and perceived child behaviors. Moreover, the coparenting alliance was positively correlated and emerged as a significant predictor with reported co-viewing practices. In contrast, higher parental sense of competence, in terms of self-efficacy, was negatively associated with reported co-viewing. These results highlight the complexities of family dynamics in digital contexts and suggest the need for further research on parental relationships and children’s screen use culture.