Mediated parent networks as communicative figurations: practical sense and communicative practices among parents in four European countries
Abstract
This paper investigates the diversity of mediated parent networks from the perspective of communicative figurations, by focussing on what kinds of networks can be identified (RQ1) and what expectations parents hold towards these networks (RQ2). It draws upon a qualitative, exploratory study conducted in Austria, Denmark, Portugal and the UK, with interviews conducted with parents across 16 families in 2021. Different kinds of parent networks are described in terms of size, perceived publicness, frames of relevance, actors involved, communicative practices, and media ensembles. Our analysis of parents’ expectations shows that disappointment seems to be closely connected to practical sense, social barriers and exclusion.
References
Allchin, A., Melchior, M., Fombonne, E., & Surkan, P. J. (2016). Parental social networks during childhood and offspring depression in early adulthood: A lifecourse approach. Depression and Anxiety, 33(11), 1031–1038. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22538.10.1002/da.22538Search in Google Scholar
Ampuja, M., Koivisto, J., & Väliverronen, E. (2014). Strong and weak forms of mediatization theory. A critical review. Nordicom Review, 35, 111–123. https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2014-0107.10.2478/nor-2014-0107Search in Google Scholar
Bagger, C., Einarsson, A. M., Andelsman Alvarez, V., Klausen, M., & Lomborg, S. (2023). Digital resignation and the datafied welfare state. Big Data & Society, 10(2), 20539517231206806.10.1177/20539517231206806Search in Google Scholar
Benedicta, B., Caldwell, P. H. Y., & Scott, K. M. (2022). How parents use, search for and appraise online health information on their child’s medical condition: A pilot study. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, 56(2), 252–258. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpc.14575.10.1111/jpc.14575Search in Google Scholar
Bengtsson, S., Fast, K., Jansson, A. & Lindell, J. (2021). Media and basic desires: An approach to measuring the mediatization of daily human life. Communications, 46(2), 275–296. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2019-0122.10.1515/commun-2019-0122Search in Google Scholar
Blum-Ross, A., & Livingstone, S. (2017). “Sharenting,” parent blogging, and the boundaries of the digital self. Popular Communication, 15(2), 110–125. https://doi.org/10.1080/15405702.2016.122330010.1080/15405702.2016.1223300Search in Google Scholar
Bonnevie, E., Rosenberg, S. D., Kummeth, C., Goldbarg, J., Wartella, E., & Smyser, J. (2020). Using social media influencers to increase knowledge and positive attitudes toward the flu vaccine. PLoS ONE, 15(10), 1–14. https://doi.org.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/10.1371/journal.pone.0240828.10.1371/journal.pone.0240828Search in Google Scholar
Bordalba, M. M., & Bochaca, J. G. (2019). Digital media for family-school communication? Parents’ and teachers’ beliefs. Computers & Education, 123, 44–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.01.006.10.1016/j.compedu.2019.01.006Search in Google Scholar
Bourdieu, P. (1979). La distinction: Critique sociale du jugement [Distinction : A social critique to judgement]. Les Éditions de Minuit.Search in Google Scholar
Bourdieu, P. (1980). Le sens pratique [Practical sense]. Les Éditions de Minuit.Search in Google Scholar
Bourdon, J., & Balbi, G. (2021). Questioning (deep) mediatization: A historical and anthropological critique. International Journal of Communication, 15, 2807–2826. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/15929/3472Search in Google Scholar
Breiter, A., & Ruhe, A. H. (2018). Paper versus school information management systems: Governing the figurations of mediatized schools in England and Germany. In A. Hepp, A. Breiter, & U. Hasebrink (Eds.), Communicative figurations: Transforming communications in times of deep mediatization (pp. 313–339). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65584-0_1310.1007/978-3-319-65584-0_13Search in Google Scholar
Brooks, R., & Hodkinson, P. (2020). Out-of-place: The lack of engagement with parent networks of caregiving fathers of young children. Families, Relationships and Societies, 9(2), 201–216. https://doi.org/10.1332/204674319X15536844488314.10.1332/204674319X15536844488314Search in Google Scholar
Bussing, R., Meyer, J., Zima, B., Mason, D., Gary, F., & Garvan, C. (2015). Childhood ADHD symptoms: Association with parental social networks and mental health service use during adolescence. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(9), 11893–11909. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph120911893.10.3390/ijerph120911893Search in Google Scholar
Byrt, A., & Dempsey, D. (2022). Encouraging ‘good’ motherhood: Self-tracking and the provision of support on apps for parents of premature infants. Information, Communication & Society, 25(8), 1135–1150. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2020.185083710.1080/1369118X.2020.1850837Search in Google Scholar
Cino, D., Gigli, A., & Demozzi, S. (2021). “That’s the only place where you can get this information today!” An exploratory study on parenting WhatsApp groups with a sample of Italian parents. Studi sulla formazione/Open Journal of Education, 24(1), 75–96. https://doi.org/10.13128/ssf-12747.Search in Google Scholar
Couldry, N. (2014). Mediatization and the future of field theory. In K. Lundby (Ed.), Mediatization of communication (pp. 227–248). De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110272215.22710.1515/9783110272215.227Search in Google Scholar
Couldry, N., & Hepp, A. (2017). The mediated construction of reality. Polity Press.Search in Google Scholar
Cox, A. B., Steinbugler, A. C., & Quinn, R. (2021). It’s who you know (and who you are): Social capital in a school-based parent network. Discourse & Society, 94(4), 359–383. https://doi.org/10.1177/095792650606025010.1177/00380407211029655Search in Google Scholar
Coyne, S. M., Mcdaniel, B. T., & Stockdale, L. A. (2017). “Do you dare to compare?” Associations between maternal social comparisons on social networking sites and parenting, mental health, and romantic relationship outcomes. Computers in Human Behavior, 70, 335–340. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.12.08110.1016/j.chb.2016.12.081Search in Google Scholar
Das, R. (2018). Mediated subjectivities of the maternal: A critique of childbirth videos on YouTube. The communication review, 21(1), 66–84.10.1080/10714421.2017.1416807Search in Google Scholar
Das, R., & Hodkinson, P. (2019). Tapestries of intimacy: Networked intimacies and new fathers’ emotional self-disclosure of mental health struggles. Social Media + Society, 5(2), 2056305119846488. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305119846488.10.1177/2056305119846488Search in Google Scholar
Das, R. (2019). Early motherhood in digital societies: Ideals, anxieties and ties of the perinatal. Routledge.10.4324/9781315167725Search in Google Scholar
Das, R. (2023). Parents’ understandings of social media algorithms in children’s lives in England: Misunderstandings, parked understandings, transactional understandings and proactive understandings amidst datafication. Journal of Children and Media, 17(4), 506–522. https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2023.2240899.10.1080/17482798.2023.2240899Search in Google Scholar
Das, R., Chimirri, N., Jorge, A., & Trültzsch-Wijnen, C. W. (2023). Parents’ social networks, transitional moments and the shaping role of digital communications: An exploratory study in Austria, Denmark, England and Portugal. Families, Relationships and Societies, 13(3), 389–406. https://doi.org/10.1332/204674321X1684133263111110.1332/204674321X16841332631111Search in Google Scholar
Drouin, M., McDaniel, B. T., Pater, J., & Toscos, T. (2020). How parents and their children used social media and technology at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and associations with anxiety. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 23(11), 727–736. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2020.028410.1089/cyber.2020.0284Search in Google Scholar
Elias, N. (1986). Was ist Soziologie? [What is sociology?]. Juventa.Search in Google Scholar
Ennis, L. R. (2014). Intensive mothering: The cultural contradictions of modern motherhood. Demeter Press.Search in Google Scholar
Erösz, S. (2019). Understanding WhatsApp parent group’s dynamics: Group communication and information sharing. MANAS Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 8(1), 1136–1052. https://doi.org/10.33206/mjss.46427510.33206/mjss.464275Search in Google Scholar
Faircloth, C. (2020) Parenting and social solidarity in cross-cultural perspective, Families, Relationships and Societies, 9(1), 143–59. https://doi.org/10.1332/204674319X15668430693616.10.1332/204674319X15668430693616Search in Google Scholar
Friedman, M. (2018). Insta-judgement: Irony, authenticity and life writing in mothers’ use of Instagram. Interactions. Studies in Communication & Culture, 9(2), 169–181. https://doi.org/10.1386/iscc.9.2.169_110.1386/iscc.9.2.169_1Search in Google Scholar
Gauthier, A. H., Bryson, C., Fadel, L., Haux, T., Koops, J., & Mynarska, M. (2021). Exploring the concept of intensive parenting in a three-country study. Demographic Research, 44, 333–348. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27032915.10.4054/DemRes.2021.44.13Search in Google Scholar
Guest, G., MacQueen, K., & Namey, E. E. (2012). Applied thematic analysis. Sage.10.4135/9781483384436Search in Google Scholar
Havighurst, R. J. (1948/1972). Developmental tasks and education, 3rd ed. Longman Inc.Search in Google Scholar
Hepp, A. (2020). Deep mediatization. Key ideas in media & cultural studies. Routledge.10.4324/9781351064903Search in Google Scholar
Hepp, A. (2022). Agency, social relations, and order: Media sociology’s shift into the digital. Communications, 47(3), 470–493. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2020-007910.1515/commun-2020-0079Search in Google Scholar
Hepp, A., & Hasebrink, U. (2018). Researching transforming communications in times of deep mediatization: A figurational approach. In A. Hepp, A. Breiter, & U. Hasebrink (Eds.), Communicative figurations. Transforming communications in times of deep mediatization (pp. 15–48). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65584-0_2.10.1007/978-3-319-65584-0_2Search in Google Scholar
Hepp, A., Hjarvard, S., & Lundby, K. (2010). Mediatization – Empirical perspectives: An introduction to a special issue. Communications, 35(3), 223–228. https://doi.org/10.1515/comm.2010.012.10.1515/comm.2010.012Search in Google Scholar
Hepp, A., Lunt, P., & Hartmann, M. (2015). Communicative figurations of the good life: Ambivalences surrounding the mediatization of homelessness and the transnational family. In H. Wang (Ed.), Communication and “the good life” (pp. 181–196). Peter Lang.Search in Google Scholar
Hjarvard, S. (2008). The mediatization of society. A theory of the media as agents of social and cultural change. Nordicom Review, 29(2), 105–134. https://doi.org/10.1515/nor-2017-018110.1515/nor-2017-0181Search in Google Scholar
Hodkinson, P., & Das, R. (2021). New Fathers, Mental Health and Digital Communication. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66482-410.1007/978-3-030-66482-4Search in Google Scholar
Hunter, A. G., Chipenda-Dansokho, S., Tarver, S. Z., Herring, M., & Fletcher, A. (2019). Social capital, parenting, and African American families. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 28(2), 547–559. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-018-1282-2.10.1007/s10826-018-1282-2Search in Google Scholar
Ishizuka, P. (2018). Social class, gender, and contemporary parenting standards in the United States: Evidence from a national survey experiment. Social Forces, 98(1), 31–58. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soy107.10.1093/sf/soy107Search in Google Scholar
Jansson, A. (2015). The molding of mediatization: The stratified indispensability of media in close relationships. Communications, 40(4), 379–401. https.doi.org/10.1515/commun-2015-0021.10.1515/commun-2015-0021Search in Google Scholar
Kalmus, V., & O’Neill, B. (2021). Through mature and yet fresh eyes: Researching emerging issues in the field of children and media. Communications, 46(3), 327–331. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2021-2050.10.1515/commun-2021-2050Search in Google Scholar
Kopecka-Piech, K., & Bolin, G. (Eds.) (2023). Contemporary challenges in mediatisation research. Routledge.10.4324/9781003324591Search in Google Scholar
Kubb, C., & Foran, H. M. (2020). Online health information seeking by parents for their children: Systematic review and agenda for further research. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(8), e19985. https://doi.org10.2196/1998510.2196/19985Search in Google Scholar
Kuldas, S., Sargioti, A., Milosevic, T., & O’Higgins Norman, J. (2021). A review and content validation of 10 measurement scales for parental mediation of children’s internet use. International Journal of Communication, 15, 4062–4084. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/17265.Search in Google Scholar
Lim, S. S. (2018). Transcendent parenting in digitally connected families. In G. Mascheroni, C. Ponte, & A. Jorge (Eds.), Digital parenting: The challenges for families in the digital age. (pp. 31–39). Nordicom.Search in Google Scholar
Liu, Z., & White, M. J. (2017). Education outcomes of immigrant youth: The role of parental engagement, The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 674(1), 27–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716217730009.10.1177/0002716217730009Search in Google Scholar
Livingstone, S., & Blum-Ross, A. (2020). How hopes and fears about technology shape children’s lives. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190874698.001.0001.10.1093/oso/9780190874698.001.0001Search in Google Scholar
Lu, W., & Hampton, K. N. (2017). Beyond the power of networks: Differentiating network structure from social media affordances for perceived social support. New Media & Society, 19(6), 861–879. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444815621514.10.1177/1461444815621514Search in Google Scholar
Lundby, K. (Ed.) (2014). Mediatization of communication. De Gruyter Mouton.10.1515/9783110272215Search in Google Scholar
Lunt, P., & Livingstone, S. (2016). Is ‘mediatization’ the new paradigm for our field? Media, Culture & Society, 38(3), 462–470. https://doi.org/10.1177/016344371663128810.1177/0163443716631288Search in Google Scholar
Lupton, D., Pedersen, S., & Thomas, G. M. (2016). Parenting and digital media: From the early web to contemporary digital society. Sociology Compass, 10(8), 730–743. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.1239810.1111/soc4.12398Search in Google Scholar
Lyons, A. (2020). Negotiating the expertise paradox in new mothers’ WhatsApp group interactions. Discourse, Context & Media, 37, 100427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2020.10042710.1016/j.dcm.2020.100427Search in Google Scholar
Magaldi, D., & Berler, M. (2020). Semi-structured interviews. In V. Zeigler-Hill, & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of personality and individual differences (pp. 4825–4830). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3.10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_857Search in Google Scholar
Mascheroni, G., & Siibak, A. (2021). Datafied childhoods. Data practices and imaginaries in children’s lives. Peter Lang.10.3726/b17460Search in Google Scholar
Maslen, S. (2023). Affective forces of connection and disconnection on Facebook: A study of Australian parents beyond toddlerhood. Information, Communication & Society, 26(9), 1716–1732. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2022.202749710.1080/1369118X.2022.2027497Search in Google Scholar
Nieuwenhuis, R. & Zagel, H. (2022). Housing conditions of single mothers in Europe: the role of housing policies. European Societies. 25 (2), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616696.2022.2117835.10.1080/14616696.2022.2117835Search in Google Scholar
Nikken, P. (2022). The touch-screen generation: Trends in Dutch parents’ perceptions of young children’s media use from 2012–2018. Communications, 47(2), 286–306. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2020-0028.10.1515/commun-2020-0028Search in Google Scholar
Novoa, C., Cova, F., Nazar, G., Oliva, K., & Vergara-Barra, P. (2022). Intensive parenting: The risks of overdemanding. Trends in Psychology, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43076-022-00229-9.10.1007/s43076-022-00229-9Search in Google Scholar
Nowak-Teter, E. (2019). Mediatization: Conceptual developments and research domains. Sociology Compass, 13(4), e12672. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12672.10.1111/soc4.12672Search in Google Scholar
Oblak Črnič, T., & Luthar, B. (2017). Media repertoires and discursive communities: Studying audiences in the multimedia age. Communications, 42(4), 415–439. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2017-0028.10.1515/commun-2017-0028Search in Google Scholar
Orton-Johnson, K. (2017). Mummy blogs and representations of motherhood: “Bad mummies” and their readers. Social Media + Society, 3(2), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305117707110.1177/2056305117707186Search in Google Scholar
Palts, K., & Kalmus, V. (2015). Digital channels in teacher-parent communication: The case of Estonia. The International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology, 11, 65–81. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1086652.Search in Google Scholar
Park, S., Stone, S. I., & Holloway, S. D. (2017). School-based parental involvement as a predictor of achievement and school learning environment: An elementary school-level analysis. Children and Youth Services Review, 82, 195–206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.09.012.10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.09.012Search in Google Scholar
Paus-Hasebrink, I. (2019). The role of media within young people’s socialization: A theoretical approach. Communications, 44(4), 407–426. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2018-201610.1515/commun-2018-2016Search in Google Scholar
Radzikowski, J., Stefanidis, A., Jacobsen, K. H., Croitoru, A., Crooks, A., & Delamater, P. L. (2016). The measles vaccination narrative in Twitter: A quantitative analysis. JMIR Public Health and Surveillance, 2(1), e1. https://doi.org/10.2196/publichealth.505910.2196/publichealth.5059Search in Google Scholar
Rehman, S., Lyons, K., McEwen, R., & Sellen, K. (2018). Motives for sharing illness experiences on Twitter: Conversations of parents with children diagnosed with cancer. Information, Communication & Society, 21(4), 578–593. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1299778.10.1080/1369118X.2017.1299778Search in Google Scholar
Roth-Ebner, C. (2024). “You just have to join in” – A mixed-methods study on children’s media consumption worlds and parental mediation. Communications, 49(1), 27–50. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2021-0111.10.1515/commun-2021-0111Search in Google Scholar
Shneyderman, Y., Vogelzang, J., & Kanekar, A. (2021). Vaccine hesitancy in parents: Role of social networks, social media, and parental autonomy. American Journal of Health Studies, 36(2), 94–102. https://doi.org/10.47779/ajhs.2021.649.10.47779/ajhs.2021.649Search in Google Scholar
Švelec-Juričić, D., & Luić, L. (2020). The impact of digital communication on parent’s attitudes towards school. EDULEARN20 Proceedings, 5850–5856. https://doi.org/10.21125/edulearn.2020.1525.10.21125/edulearn.2020.1525Search in Google Scholar
Tosun, L. P., Öztürk, A., & Özdemir, G. (2020). Mother to mother: Mothers’ social comparison-based emotions on social networking sites. Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 16(4), 602–618. https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.v16i4.2159.10.5964/ejop.v16i4.2159Search in Google Scholar
Townley, C. (2022) The relationship between social support and parent identity in community playgroups. Families, Relationships and Societies, 12(2), 236–252. https://doi.org/10.1332/204674321X16425031895539.10.1332/204674321X16425031895539Search in Google Scholar
Trültzsch-Wijnen, C. W. (2020). Media literacy and the effect of socialization. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-56360-810.1007/978-3-030-56360-8Search in Google Scholar
Xie, J., He, Z., Burnett, G., & Cheng, Y. (2021). How do mothers exchange parenting-related information in online communities? A meta-synthesis. Computers in Human Behavior, 115. https://doi.org.10.1016/j.chb.2020.10663.10.1016/j.chb.2020.106631Search in Google Scholar
© 2024 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston