Parental Information-Use Strategies in a Digital Parenting Environment and Their Associations With Parental Social Support and Self-Efficacy: Cross-Sectional Study
2024

Parental Information-Use Strategies in a Digital Parenting Environment

Sample size: 420 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Nguyen Anh, Platt Carrie Anne, Byrne Sonia, Onishi Ryuta

Primary Institution: Toyama Prefectural University

Hypothesis

What are the distinct patterns of the combined use of online and offline parenting information?

Conclusion

Online information can effectively complement offline information in addressing parenting challenges, although it cannot fully replace offline sources.

Supporting Evidence

  • Multisource gatherers had the highest levels of parental self-efficacy.
  • Online-centric gatherers showed lower availability of social support.
  • Offline-centric gatherers preferred face-to-face information sources.

Takeaway

Parents can use both online and offline information to help with parenting, and using both types can make them feel more confident.

Methodology

An internet-based survey was administered to 434 parents of children aged 0-3 years, analyzing their information use patterns.

Potential Biases

Convenience sampling may lead to selection bias, as respondents may have higher online affinity.

Limitations

The study's cross-sectional design limits causal inferences, and self-reporting may introduce bias.

Participant Demographics

The sample consisted of 201 mothers (47.9%) and 219 fathers (52.1%), with a mean age of 34.5 for mothers and 39.8 for fathers.

Statistical Information

P-Value

p<0.001

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.2196/58757

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