Matea Bodrožić Selak

This study aimed to examine the associations between parents’ smartphone use during conversations with children, children’s emotional and behavioral reactions to parents’ smartphone use, and children’s well-being. This study was conducted on a sample of 284 children (aged 10 to 15 years, with a mean age of 12.23 in 2021; 40.2% boys). The data come from a four-wave longitudinal study (2021–2023) within the project D.E.C.I.D.E. Children reported how often their parents use smartphones during conversations with them (second wave), their emotions and behaviors related to parents’ smartphone use (third wave), and their subjective well-being (fourth wave). A proposed model was tested in which the frequency of parents’ smartphone use during parent–child conversations was a predictor, different children’s emotional and behavioral reactions to parents’ smartphone use were mediators, and children’s well-being was the criterion. The results showed that more frequent parents’ smartphone use is associated with more frequent children’s experiences of anger and sadness in situations when parents use smartphones while with children, which is linked to lower children’s well-being. More frequent parents’ smartphone use is associated with more giving up on seeking parents’ attention among children, which is related to lower well-being.

This study aimed to examine the associations between parents’ difficulties in emotion regulation, risk for smartphone addiction, and interruptions of parent-child interactions. The sample comprised 281 parents (80.9% mothers) who participated in the project “Digital technology in the family: patterns of behavior and effects on child development”. Parents completed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-16; Bjureberg et al., 2016) and the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS-SV; Kwon et. al., 2013). Additionally, parents rated how often they use and check their smartphones during parent-child interactions on a newly developed scale as an indicator of interruptions. The results show that parents with greater emotion regulation difficulty have a greater risk for smartphone addiction and report a higher frequency of using and checking their smartphones during parent-child face-to-face interactions. Thus, there is a significant indirect effect of emotion regulation challenges, through risk for smartphone addiction, on interruptions of interactions between parents and children. The findings are further examined within the context of parents’ characteristics that may be risk factors for the prevalence of interruptions of parent-child interactions.

This research aimed at addressing questions about what consumer goods are trending among adolescents in Croatia and why they want to have the consumer goods their peers have. The research was conducted using the method of online focus groups with children. The sample consisted of 40 adolescents (20 boys, 20 girls; average age = 14). The analysis of statements suggests that the current trend are brand clothing items, followed by smartphones and other technology items. The research shows that the reasons for children wanting to buy material goods they see in their peers are: they can play and socialise; they can bond, connect, and feel a sense of unity; they can fit in, and/or because everybody has it; they are not excluded; and finally, to acquire social status. The findings of the work indicate that adolescents want material things that are like those of their peers because of the need for connection, belonging, and relationships, but educators and parents should provide different possibilities to satisfy those needs.

Research examining the relations among adolescent’s problematic smartphone use, parent–adolescent conflicts about smartphone use, family communication, and adolescent communication skills is scarce. Thus, the study empirically examined a model of the direct and indirect effects of adolescents’ problematic smartphone use on adolescent communication skills via family communication and parent–adolescent conflicts about smartphone use. The data used for the creation of this paper came from a sample of 284 adolescents (59.4% girls), aged 10 to 15, who participated in a four-wave longitudinal study (2021–2023) examining the effects of smartphone use on well-being and development. Adolescents rated their problematic smartphone use (wave 1), conflicts with parents about their smartphone use (wave 2), family communication (wave 3), and communication skills (wave 4). There was no support for the direct effect of problematic smartphone use on communication skills. Our path analysis showed a significant indirect effect of problematic smartphone use on communication skills via family communication. Our analysis also showed a significant direct effect of problematic smartphone use on conflicts between parents and adolescents about the time spent using smartphones and balancing activities with smartphone use. The findings of this study imply that excessive and extensive smartphone use may pose a risk factor for frequent parent–adolescent conflicts, poor family communication, and poor adolescent communication skills.

U ovoj monografiji prikazan je istraživačko-edukativni projekt Pandemija i ja u kojem su sudjelovali studenti psihologije i njihovi prijatelji i poznanici, njih ukupno oko 750. Projekt je pokrenut na početku pandemije (u ožujku 2020. godine) u sklopu nastave iz kolegija Zdravstvena psihologija i Praktikum iz psihodijagnostike na Odjelu za psihologiju Sveučilišta u Zadru. Cilj projekta bio je pružanje međusobne psihološke potpore i poticanje mentalno-zdravstvene pismenosti, a u svrhu prevencije negativnih psiholoških posljedica pandemije. Nas tri autorice zajedno s našim studentima prve i druge godine diplomskog studija, osmišljavale smo online upitnike i anketna pitanja, psihoedukativne materijale, radile analizu prikupljenih podataka i obavještavale sudionike o dobivenim rezultatima. Na temelju analize pokazatelja psihičkog zdravlja može se zaključiti da se u ovom istraživanju radilo o sudionicima koji su se dobro nosili sa novonastalom situacijom. Dobiveni rezultati sastavni su dio nekoliko diplomskih i završnih radova naših studenata te prezentacija na stručnim i znanstvenim skupovima. No, više od svega, ovaj je projekt za velik broj nas bio oblik međusobne podrške i način da što lakše prođemo kroz ovo krizno razdoblje. U ovoj monografiji prikazan je istraživačko-edukativni projekt Pandemija i ja u kojem su sudjelovali studenti psihologije i njihovi prijatelji i poznanici, njih ukupno oko 750. Projekt je pokrenut na početku pandemije (u ožujku 2020. godine) u sklopu nastave iz kolegija Zdravstvena psihologija i Praktikum iz psihodijagnostike na Odjelu za psihologiju Sveučilišta u Zadru. Cilj projekta bio je pružanje međusobne psihološke potpore i poticanje mentalno-zdravstvene pismenosti, a u svrhu prevencije negativnih psiholoških posljedica pandemije. Nas tri autorice zajedno s našim studentima prve i druge godine diplomskog studija, osmišljavale smo online upitnike i anketna pitanja, psihoedukativne materijale, radile analizu prikupljenih podataka i obavještavale sudionike o dobivenim rezultatima. Na temelju analize pokazatelja psihičkog zdravlja može se zaključiti da se u ovom istraživanju radilo o sudionicima koji su se dobro nosili sa novonastalom situacijom. Dobiveni rezultati sastavni su dio nekoliko diplomskih i završnih radova naših studenata te prezentacija na stručnim i znanstvenim skupovima. No, više od svega, ovaj je projekt za velik broj nas bio oblik međusobne podrške i način da što lakše prođemo kroz ovo krizno razdoblje.

In the present digital age, the number of digital devices and media has multiplied, giving young children and their parents access to them anytime and anywhere. The family and home environment constitutes an important ecological context for fostering and supporting the development of safe online behaviour, as well as preventing risky online behaviour in young children. During childhood, parents play an influential role in shaping a child’s use of digital technology (DT) devices through parental practices that are shaped by their beliefs about DT. The first aim of this study was to describe preferred digital devices, activities, and emotional states related to digital device use among children aged 4 to 8 years. The second aim was to describe parental viewpoints about their children’s device use. The data was collected through online interviews with 31 children (16 girls), aged 4 to 8 years, and one parent of each of the children included in the project “Digital technology in the family: patterns of behaviour and effects on child development”. The results show that smartphones are the children’s favourite device and playing video games is their preferred digital activity. Most children reported feeling happy when they used DT devices, as well as feeling sad and angry when they had to stop using them. Parental motivation for providing children access to DT devices can be child- and parent-oriented. Parents frequently emphasised the educational aspects of their children’s device use, but they were aware of the negative and positive effects on the children’s functioning. The findings indicate that children’s daily context of living in association with DT usage is characterised by small, portable devices that are used mainly for entertainment. Additionally, their parents allow the use of such devices because they believe that DT can have a positive impact on child development, and they need to occupy children’s attention in specific situations. However, DT device usage is limited due to the awareness of the negative impact on child development.