Digital Parenting of Emerging Adults in the 21st Century

The mediating effect of maturity on anxiety and the motives for postponing parenthood

Postponed parenthood is considered one of the most extensive changes in the process of family formation. Among the many reasons for deferred parenthood, those related to greater feelings of incompetence as a potential parent, self-focus, perceiving parenthood as a burden, fearing the changes that the birth of a child may bring to a person's life, financial insecurity, and worrying about the child's future seem particularly important. Since little is known about the motives for delayed parenthood in relation to anxiety and psychological maturity, the main goal of our study was to verify how these variables may be related to each other and whether maturity for parenthood mediates the direct association between anxiety and the motives for delayed parenthood. The sample consisted of 223 Polish adults (the age range of the participants was 18-44 years). The respondents completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Maturity to Parenthood Scale (MPS), and the Multidimensional Scale of Motives for Postponing Parenthood (MSMPP-18). The results showed positive correlations between anxiety and four (uncertainty, burden, change, and finance) of the six motives for postponing parenthood and postponed parenthood overall. Maturity for parenting and all its dimensions correlated negatively with anxiety and all factors of postponed parenthood, except worry about the child's future. In all six of the seven models (except "worry"), at least one of the factors of maturity to parenthood mediated the relationship between trait anxiety and motives for postponing parenthood/total score. Based on the results it can be assumed that a tendency to direct attention to a threat related to the context of child-bearing and child-rearing may lead to lower maturity to parenthood, which in turn may result in various motives for postponing parenthood.

Changes in Parent-Student Text Message and Phone Call Communication During the Transition to College as Predictors of Cannabis and Simultaneous Use During the First Year

Parent communication can be protective against cannabis use among young adults. However, changes in parent-student communication frequency naturally occur during the transition from high school to college. Recent research suggests declines in parent-student communication frequency predict increased drinking and consequences during the first year of college, yet these effects on other risky behaviors are unknown. The current study investigated whether post-matriculation changes in frequency of texting/calling with parents predict cannabis use and simultaneous use of cannabis and alcohol, and whether pre-matriculation cannabis and simultaneous use predict changes in communication. First-year students (N = 287, 61.3% female, 50.9% White) reported cannabis and simultaneous use pre- and post-matriculation (T1 & T3) and changes in frequency of texting/calling their mother/father per day (T2). Negative binomial hurdle models examined whether T2 changes in communication frequency predicted T3 cannabis and simultaneous use, and logistic regression models examined whether T1 cannabis and simultaneous use predicted T2 changes in communication frequency. Results revealed that increasing (vs. decreasing) frequency of calling with mothers and texting with fathers was protective against cannabis use, whereas increasing frequency of calling with fathers was associated with greater risk of use. Changes in communication did not significantly predict simultaneous use, nor did pre-matriculation cannabis or simultaneous use predict changes in either mode of communication with parents during the college transition. These findings highlight that changes in mother and father communication may be both beneficial and detrimental to cannabis use depending on the parent and mode of communication. Implications for these findings are discussed.

Digital location tracking in the parent/caregiver-college student dyad

INTRODUCTION

As college students navigate new developmental milestones, many families rely on digital technology to stay connected and aid in the transition to adulthood. Digital location tracking apps allow for parental monitoring in new ways that may have implications for youth development. Although recent research has begun to examine prevalence and motivations for digital location tracking in adolescence, we know little about how and why families continue to track into the transition to college, and how this may relate to perceptions of helicopter and autonomy supportive parenting.

METHODS

In a cross-sectional study of 706 community college and 4-year university students in the Southeastern United States, we describe prevalence and sociodemographic differences in parent/caregiver digital location tracking of their college student children, and how this may be associated with perceptions of helicopter parenting and parent/caregiver autonomy support.

RESULTS

Findings suggest that digital location tracking is a fairly common practice among college students, with nearly half of the sample endorsing currently or previously being digitally location tracked by their parent/caregiver. Younger, White, and higher socioeconomic status students were more likely to be tracked. Those students who were currently being digitally location tracked tended to perceive their primary parent/caregiver as engaging in more helicopter parenting and as less supportive of their autonomy.

CONCLUSIONS

This brief report provides preliminary insight into parent/caregiver digital location tracking of their college student children. It is our hope that future research will further examine how digital location tracking may be helping or hindering attainment of developmental milestones in the digital age.

Psychometric properties of the Mobile Phone Parenting Practices Questionnaire (MPPPQ) for Chinese separated families with young children

The current study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the newly developed Mobile Phone Parenting Practices Questionnaire (MPPPQ) in a sample of Chinese migrant parents experiencing long-term parent-child separation. A total of 547 rural-to-urban migrant parents with 3-to-6-year-old children left in rural hometowns were recruited online and completed electronic questionnaires. Exploratory (N1 = 288) and confirmatory (N2 = 259) factor analyses were successively used to identify the factor structure. The results indicated that the MPPPQ consists of six dimensions, responsivity, autonomy granting, proactive control, directive control, psychological control, and harsh punitive control, with a good model fit. The dimensions showed good internal consistency and composite reliability. By examining associations with constructs of the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire, convergent validity was well established. The criterion validity of the MPPPQ was confirmed by its associations with parental stress, indicated by the Parental Stress Scale. This initial examination of the MPPPQ conveys that it holds good psychometric properties and may contribute to theoretical, methodological, and practical applications regarding parenting in the context of family separation and media use.

Do Changes in Parent-Student Phone Call and Text Message Communication During the Transition to College Predict First-Year Drinking and Consequences? A Prospective Study

OBJECTIVE

We examined (a) whether changes in parent-student phone call and text messaging communication during the transition into college are associated with alcohol use and related consequences, and (b) whether pre-matriculation drinking patterns predicted these changes in parent-student communication.

METHOD

First-year students (n = 246; M age [SD] = 17.91 [0.39] years; 61.8% female) participated in a longitudinal survey study as a part of a larger study. Before matriculation (Time 0), participants reported their drinking and whether they experienced alcohol consequences in the past 30 days. Approximately 1 month into their first semester (Time 1), participants reported if the frequency of their calling and texting their parents had decreased, remained the same, or increased since the start of college. Drinking and consequences were then reassessed 4 months later (Time 2). Analytic models evaluated (a) whether a decrease in calling and texting parents, as reported by students (compared with an increase or no change), predicted drinking outcomes, and (b) whether pre-college drinking (compared with nondrinking) predicted changes in communication.

RESULTS

Changes in phone calls and texting with mothers and fathers during the first month of college predicted alcohol use and consequences into the second semester. In addition, heavy drinking predicted lower odds of texting frequency with mothers staying the same or increasing.

CONCLUSIONS

This study underscores that consistent call or text communication with students during their transition into college could serve as a protective factor against alcohol risk. By closely monitoring such communication, parents may be better equipped to identify potential signs of risky drinking behavior in their first-year students.

Dyadic parent-college student digital interaction styles

Parents and their emerging adult children are highly connected via mobile phones in the digital age. This digital connection has potential implications for the development of autonomy and sustained parent-child relatedness across the course of emerging adulthood. The present study uses the qualitatively coded content of nearly 30,000 U.S. parent-college student text messages, exchanged by 238 college students and their mothers and fathers over the course of 2 weeks, to identify distinct dyadic parent-emerging adult digital interaction styles across dimensions of responsiveness and monitoring. Results reveal that digital interaction styles are largely consistent across age, gender, and parent education as well as reflective (i.e., texting patterns of parents and emerging adults mirror one another), with little evidence of overparenting profiles. Results also show that those college students who are reciprocally disengaged in text messaging with their parents perceive their parents as less digitally supportive. However, no styles were associated with perceived parental pressure to digitally engage. Findings suggest that the mobile phone is likely a valuable tool to maintain connection with few risks for undermining the privacy and autonomy of emerging adults. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Introduction to Special Issue “Parenting in the 21st Century”

The nature of parenting and parent–child relationships is often dramatically affected by the historical period in which one raises children [...]