Parental mediation and children’s coping in collectivist and religious contexts: a qualitative study of Indonesian families

Abstract

While existing models of digital parenting and digital resilience are largely grounded in Western individualistic contexts, limited attention has been given to how families in collectivist and religious societies foster children’s resilience to online risks. This study addresses this gap by examining how Indonesian parents mediate their children’s digital experiences within cultural and religious frameworks. Using a qualitative design, open-ended responses were collected from 34 Indonesian parents and analyzed through thematic analysis. The findings reveal three interconnected patterns of parental mediation and child coping: (1) authoritative co-use, characterized by shared screen time and reflective dialogue; (2) religious-integrated restrictions, in which digital rules are embedded within Islamic moral practices such as prayer and fasting; and (3) child-initiated coping, reflecting children’s emerging agency in managing exposure to online risks. Together, these patterns suggest an authoritative-collectivist model of digital parenting that integrates structured guidance, emotional closeness, and moral-religious instruction. This study contributes to the literature by offering a culturally embedded alternative to dominant Western frameworks and underscores the importance of developing culturally responsive models of digital literacy and resilience-building in collectivist societies.

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