Going above and beyond? How parent–daycare mobile communication reconfigures the time and space dimensions of parenting

The study investigates the links between digital childcare, mobile communication technology and the values and relationships they enable. The purpose of the study is to look at how mobile communication technologies affect the parental role, including how the exchange and experience of care are affected. The research questions are: 1) How does the use of mobile applications for communication between parents and kindergarten reconfigure the dimensions of time and space in the parental role? 2) In what ways, if any, do these practices challenge the distinction between warm care and cold technology?

The study identified four ways that Aula reconfigures the time and space dimensions of the parental role. While the children are in kindergarten, communication via Aula enables parents to plan ahead. Parents can synchronise expectations and schedules with the kindergarten and their children. In addition, it enables parents to look back on their children’s time in kindergarten. Communication via Aula also helps to strengthen a sense of community. The results also show how cold technology can enable parents to practice warm care even when they are not with their children. Mobile communication can provide a sense of closeness and help build relationships.

The researchers conducted a case study based on the mobile application Aula, which is a compulsory communication tool between families and public kindergartens in Denmark. The study sample consists of 18 parents, six men and twelve women, with children aged 0-6 years. The study is part of a larger project in which parents were interviewed three times over a period of one year. The researchers conducted a total of 35 in-depth interviews, either individually or in groups. The first analyses of the data material combined in-vivo encoding and process encoding to investigate communication practices. Subsequently, the codes were classified focusing on how the Aula application affected parents’ time and space practices.

Andelsman Alvarez, V., & Meleschko, S. K. (2023). Going above and beyond? How parent–daycare mobile communication reconfigures the time and space dimensions of parenting. Mobile Media & Communication, https://doi.org/10.1177/20501579231203533

Online year: 2023

Issue year: 2024

Review year: 2023