Parents' use of information and communications technologies for family communication: differences by age of children

Abstract

Despite widespread adoption of information and communications technologies (ICTs) by families in the United States, little is known about parents' use of ICTs specifically for family communication. Using a national sample of parents (N = 1322), this study examined parents' use of four widely used ICTs (text message, email, social networking sites, and Skype) to communicate with family including differences in use by child's age. Results show parents' use of various ICTs is dynamic, reflecting developmental differences in the child and relational differences in the family system. Findings revealed that the use of ICTs for parent–child communication increased with child's age, communication with co-parent via text message was more likely among parents of school-aged children, and parents of adolescent children were less likely to use text or email to communicate with non-resident family than parents of school-aged children. Examining how parents are using specific ICTs to communicate with particular family members furthers our understanding of the impact of technology on communication processes occurring within families in today's digital age.

Keywords:

• Computer-mediated communication
• ICTs
• social media
• family communication
• parenting

Funding

This work was supported by a Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station grant.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jessie Rudi

Jessie Rudi is a doctoral candidate in Family Social Science at the University of Minnesota. She is interested in how families use technology for communication, and the impact these processes have on family and youth development.

Jodi Dworkin

Jodi Dworkin, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist at the University of Minnesota in the Department of Family Social Science.

Susan Walker

Susan Walker, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and Director of Parent and Family Education. Dr. Walker's research on the integration of technology into family life and learning is an aspect of her scholarship on social contexts that support parenting.

Jennifer Doty

Jennifer Doty is a doctoral candidate in the Family Social Science department at the University of Minnesota. Her research interests include parents' access to social capital online and offline and parent–adolescent relationships, especially as these relate to family-based prevention and intervention.