Determinants of Parent Problematic Media Use and Relations with Adolescent Problematic Media Use

• In Event: Poster Session 05
  In Poster Session: PS 05 Topic - Technology, Media & Child Development

Abstract

Adolescent problematic media use is related to a number of suboptimal outcomes, including poor health (Domoff, Sutherland, Yokum, & Gearhardt, 2020) and academic performance problems (Domoff, Foley, & Ferkel, 2019). Thus, understanding factors related to children’s problematic media use is crucial. Child technology and media use may be related to parents’ own media use. Research suggests that the influence of parent media use on children’s own media use may not be conscious but is still an important consideration in child and adolescent media use (Hefner, Knop, Schmitt, & Vorderer, 2019; Lam & Wong, 2015). To further understand these relations between parent and adolescent media use, examining how and why parents are using technology and media will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of how problematic media use occurs and may contribute to determining effective interventions. Research has shown links between parent challenges and more maternal technology use (McDaniel, Coyne, & Holmes, 2012). A less regulated child who has issues with controlling emotions may be more challenging for parents and cause parents to engage more with media as a coping mechanism. We expected that mothers who reported their adolescents had less emotional regulation would have more problematic media use, which would, in turn, predict more adolescent problematic media use.
Participants were 78 adolescents (M=14.20, SD=1.87, 44 girls) and their mothers. Mothers rated adolescents on the Emotion Regulation Checklist (Shields & Cicchetti, 1997); subscales for emotion regulation (higher scores indicated more emotion regulation) and lability/negativity (higher scores indicated more negativity) were computed. Mothers and adolescents completed modified versions of Problematic Media Use Measure (PMUM; Domoff et al., 2017) to assess their own screen media use in different suboptimal domains, such as preoccupation, tolerance, and withdrawal.
Following recommendations by Hayes (2009), mediation analyses were based on 5000 bootstrapped samples and 95% confidence intervals, and adolescent sex and age were controlled for in analyses. Parent perception of adolescent emotion regulation negatively predicted parent media use (see Figure 1). Parent media use predicted adolescent media use. When parent problematic media use was entered into the model, there was no significant relation between parent report of adolescent emotion regulation and adolescent problematic media use. There were similar findings for adolescent lability/negativity, though lability/negativity positively predicted parent problematic media use (see Figure 2).
Parents’ own problematic media use was explained by parent perception of adolescent emotion regulation. Parents who perceive their adolescents to be more difficult or challenging may be more likely to use media in problematic ways as a strategy to avoid hardships in parenting or to cope with stress from parenting adolescents. Further, parent problematic media use predicted adolescent media use. These findings of a direct relation between parent and adolescent media use can support a social learning framework, wherein adolescents model behaviors observed from parents with regard to technology and media use. The strong associations between parent and child media use highlight the importance of considering the whole family, rather than individuals, in interventions aimed at reducing media use.

Authors

• Diana Devine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  Presenting Author

• Cynthia L. Smith, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Tatiana Meza-Cervera, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Ran Liu, Columbia University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Martha Ann Bell, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  Non-Presenting Author