Parenting for a Digital Future

More about the book

In the decades of raising a child, parents encounter unique challenges shaped by unprecedented digital innovation. This book, grounded in extensive research with diverse parents, explores how digital technologies influence personal and political parenting struggles, as parents navigate uncharted territory with little guidance. It highlights the dual pressures of modern parenting, where responsibilities are heightened, and the need to respect children's agency complicates family dynamics. Parents often assert authority and values through digital means—using "screen time," games, and social media as tools for connection and boundary-setting. The authors illustrate how these technologies present both valuable opportunities and new risks. Parents reflect on their childhood experiences while envisioning varied futures for their children, leading to a spectrum of parenting styles that embrace, resist, or balance technology's role. Moving beyond sensational headlines, this book provides a thorough exploration of parenting amid significant social and technological shifts. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative research from the United Kingdom, it offers insights and conclusions relevant to parents, policymakers, educators, and researchers worldwide.