Investigation of the Relationship between Parents' Awareness of Digital Parenting and the Effects of Digital Games on Their Children

Abstract

With the changing living conditions and developing technology, digital parenting has become a noteworthy concept. Opening their eyes in a digital world, children have started to meet their needs such as games with digital games. The aim of this study is to examine parents' digital awareness levels and their views on the effects of digital games at an early age in terms of demographic variables. The quantitative research method was adopted in the study, and the model of the research is the factorial pattern, one of the multivariate designs that aims to reveal the effects of multiple independent variables together. The research group consists of 523 parents selected from the parents of children between the ages of 3-8, using the random sampling method. MANOVA was applied for nine dependent variables and five independent variables in the study. Result of the research, the digital awareness levels of parents differ only in the risk protection sub-dimension according to the number of children parents have. The digital awareness levels of parents differ only in the risk protection sub-dimension according to the number of children parents have. The digital awareness levels of parents differ significantly in the sub-dimensions of protection from risks, efficient use and digital neglect according to the independent variable of the type of game their children prefer to play. Parental awareness levels regarding the effects of digital games on their children at an early age show a significant difference according to the independent variables of the age when children start playing digital games and the type of game their children prefer to play. Parental awareness levels about the effects of digital games on their children at early ages differ significantly only in the social sub-dimension according to the age when children start playing digital games. Parental awareness levels regarding the effects of digital games on their children at an early age differ significantly according to the independent variable of the type of game their children prefer to play, with fun, physical, social and emotional sub-dimensions.