National Parent Panel: media mainly used as a pacifier for children

Published Apr 18, 2019

Parents mainly let their children use media when they are doing household chores, taking a long car journey or sitting in a public space such as the doctor’s waiting room. This is evident from research among the National Parent Panel conducted by Stichting Opvoeden.nl in collaboration with the Netwerk Mediawijsheid. 717 parents took part.

National Parent Panel: media mainly used as a pacifier for children

In addition to using media as a pacifier, according to the parents, media are also used together with other family members, when their child is ill or when they wake up together in bed in the morning. Despite the active role media play in these situations, the parents indicate that they are not very consciously engaged in media education.

Need for facts and figures about screen time

More than half of the parents say they do not seek out information about media education. Those who do mainly do so via the internet, friends or family and other parents. In particular, they look for facts and figures about screen time and personal stories from other parents. Online, most information is sought via Ouders van Nu, the website of the Centrum voor Jeugd en Gezin or the GGD and Opvoeden.nl. Facebook is the most consulted social medium. When looking for information, parents consider it important that there is a short list of tips and an explanation from a media expert.

Reliable information for parents

As part of the research, parents were presented with texts from Opvoeden.nl to evaluate. We are using the feedback that emerged from this to better meet parents’ needs. Do you work with parents? Then refer them to Opvoeden.nl for tips and advice about media education, compiled by experts from academia and practice as well as parents themselves. Via Mediaopvoeding.nl, parents can ask a media expert a question free of charge for personal advice. On the YouTube channel of Stichting Opvoeden.nl, you will find all kinds of videos featuring parents and children talking about media education in their homes.

Background information about the research

The National Parent Panel is an initiative of Stichting Opvoeden.nl and Ouders & Onderwijs. The panel consists of almost 4,300 fathers and mothers. The research into media education took place from 8 to 19 March 2019. During this period, 717 parents completed the questionnaire. Of the respondents, 691 were women and 26 were men. When completing the survey, respondents based their answers on their youngest child. For 53.7% of respondents, the youngest child was between 0 and 2 years old, while for 46.3%, the youngest child was 2 years or older.

Read the research here.

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