“My Mom took My Phone and Locked It in the Wardrobe”: Parental Mediation in Teen-Parent Relationship in Technology Usage from Teens Perspective in Bangladesh

Abstract

The teen-parent relationship is studied from the perspective of teens relating to the usage of technology in the context of urban Bangladesh. We studied n=28 teens of different socioeconomic statuses and school systems qualitatively. The study uncovers the current state of teen-parent relationships where parental mediation on teens' technology usage impacts the relationship. Parents of middle and lower-income families want to control the technology usage of female teens for cyber abuse-related concerns. This parental restrictive mediation negatively impacts teen-parent relationships. Also, teens from higher-income families hide their online activities from their parents for fear of monitoring and often exclude parents in their cyberspace. As a result, there create strong barriers in online relationships with parents that refer to distant relationships between them. However, a good understanding regarding technology usage between teens and parents impacts the relationship positively. Based on our findings, we have presented design implications that can ensure a safe online platform for teens, co-sharing transparent technology usage space, and community level discussion platform, for both teens and parents to promote a good relationship between teens and parents.