The Impact of Family on Digital Literacy: A Bourdieusian Study of Youth Experiencing Homelessness

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 3:20 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: A Bourdieusian Approach to Education Systems Across the World (Table 1)

Abstract

This study examined digital literacies in 25 young adults (19-24) in a midwestern US city, focusing on the influence of family experiences on their digital attitudes, abilities, and habits. Using Bourdieu's framework, the research identified connections between engagement in various fields (family, school, economic), access to capital, and digital literacy development. Family was crucial for accumulating and transmitting cultural capital, but the link between early family experiences and digital skills was not always clear. Factors such as housing instability and digital engagement, influenced by participants' habitus and doxic beliefs, complicated the transfer of capital between fields. The study reveals the complex interplay of factors affecting digital literacy development beyond simple family influences.

Author

• Rick J. Voithofer, The Ohio State University