The mothers, all heterosexual co-parents, intervened in their children’s use of technology and “performed strenuous, continuous, carefree work that took a physical and emotional toll on them.”
They are concerned about expending significant energy on their children’s digital use, highlighting potential risks of online engagement, fraud and other dangers, and understanding how children use computers and phones. We talked about establishing rules and boundaries.
There was another side to that effort. It is either ambivalent about whether children are allowed to use social media and other technologies, or negotiates the terms of children’s media access with skeptical partners who are liberal about children’s use of digital media. to do.
Overall, the analysis found that mothers strive to stay informed about how their children are using screen time and to raise their children to be “responsible digital citizens.”
Despite the frustration and effort involved in monitoring digital media use, many see the phone as a way to keep in touch with their children and keep them safe and focused. told the researchers. But this “digital umbilical cord” can also cause anxiety, like when kids don’t respond to text messages, refuse to answer, or forget their cell phones.
“The increased use of digital devices is having a significant impact on mothers in terms of demanding more time, energy and mental and cognitive work, which is reflected in their career choices and paid work patterns. It can have an impact,” says communication researcher and lecturer Fay Heathelgrave. The University of South Australia, which conducted the study, said in a news release. release.
Future research is needed to better understand how much unpaid and unacknowledged time mothers spend on digital child care and what role it plays in parenting. she says.
