Parental Attitudes and the Perception of Risks and Opportunities Associated with Preschool Children’s Use of New Technologies
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.16926/Keywords:
preschool children, new technologies, parental attitudes, middle childhoodAbstract
Preschool children today are increasingly exposed to screen technologies from an early age.
Parents determine the scope and form of this exposure, guided by their parenting attitudes. This
study aimed to examine whether parental attitudes are related to how parents perceive develop-
mental risks and opportunities associated with new technologies. The study included 132 parents
of children aged 3–6. The Parental Attitudes Scale (Plopa, 2011) and an original Opportunities and
Threats Questionnaire were used. Results showed that fathers with an autonomy-supportive atti-
tude perceived fewer developmental threats, and that fathers in general reported more concerns
than mothers. Among mothers and parents of older children, a negative correlation between per-
ceived risks and opportunities was found. These findings highlight the important role of fathers in
mediating children’s technology use and suggest that mothers may more often treat screen media
as a tool for managing daily routines.
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