ICT Kids Survey in Brazil – Understanding the Challenges in Mediating Brazilian Children’s Internet Use

Children, Youth & Media - 12/2011 - [ gif ]
Assunto: Indicadores CETIC.br

Information and communication technologies (ICT) have been significantly transforming central aspects of social life, particularly for children. The growing use of the Internet by Brazilian children poses challenges to the government, families, educators, and the children themselves.

Based on the findings of a nationwide survey carried out in Brazil in 2010, the ICT Kids conducted by CGI.br (5) and NIC.br (6), this article discusses the Internet use of Brazilian children, illustrating the challenges of mediation and briefly presenting policy issues relating to mediation. The study is based on face-to-face interviews in households conducted for the purpose of investigating Internet use and appropriation among children aged five to nine years.

Media Literacy and Mediation of Internet Use

In general terms, media literacy skills involve three basic abilities – knowing how to: access messages, evaluate the quality of information, and produce content using various languages and platforms. Once they have mastered these skills, citizens will be able to better interact with media and, according to Martinsson (2009), through this experience will also be able to improve critical thinking and autonomy, solve problems, and develop more sophisticated communication and expression skills. These skills are critical to the development of an active and informed citizenship.

While on the one hand media literacy is a relevant aspect in the preparation of citizens who are capable of critically using media, the mediation of Internet use on the other hand combines the benefits of the Internet with the minimization of its risks and dangers. Parents, guardians and educators play an important role in the process of mediation (Livingstone & Helsper, 2008). The strategies implemented to regulate the use of media by children vary according to the different circumstances and contexts in which the Internet is accessed, and also according to the resources used to mediate its use and the agents involved in the process. Understanding the process of mediation is relevant since it reflects the changing relations among social structures and agents (Livingstone, 2009). Mediation implies the possibility to influence the relationship one establishes with a specific medium in a certain way (Simões, 2011).

Brazilian Children and the Internet

In Brazil, 51% of children aged five to nine years declared they had already used a computer. When it comes to Internet use, this percentage is only 27%. Computer and Internet use by children in Brazil is uneven nationwide, and varies according to factors like age and socio-economic status. Survey results reveal that the older the age group, the higher the percentage of children who use the Internet. Among five-year-olds the proportion of Internet users is 14%, whereas among nine-year-olds it reaches 34%. Social class (7) also features as a relevant factor: in higher income households, the proportion of Internet users is 57% and in medium income households, it reaches 27%, whereas in lower income households only 8% have used the Internet.

Access to the Internet among children aged five to nine years takes place mainly in the household, as mentioned by 47% of the children who have already accessed the web. Access at another person’s home ranked second, mentioned by 37%. There are also other locations of access to the Internet frequently used by children aged five to nine years: school was mentioned by 33%, followed by LAN houses (8) (27%).

It is noteworthy that the location of access to the Internet varies according to the age of the child. In school, for example, the percentage of Internet use is lower among five-year-olds (17%) and higher among nine-year-olds (39%). Interestingly, the situation is reversed when it comes to households: while 50% of five-year-olds claimed to have accessed the Internet from their households, only 42% of nine-year-olds had done so. Older children are the most present at LAN houses – 36% of nine-year-olds claim to access the Internet from this location. Among five-year-olds, this percentage is lower – 28%.

When asked “Who do you use the Internet with?” the majority of children aged five to nine years old claimed to do so alone, that is, unsupervised. More than one-third of Brazilian children in this age range who have already accessed the Internet (39%) mentioned being alone while using the Internet.

When the child is not using the Internet alone, the presence of his/her mother is the most mentioned (35%). Others mentioned were relatives (29%), teachers at school (28%), siblings (26%) and friends (25%). This suggests that the child perceives the presence of different agents of mediation during his/ her Internet activities, and this varies according to various circumstances under which the Internet is used.

Results reveal that the agent of mediation varies according to the location of Internet use. It is at home where the mother (65%), father (64%) and siblings (45%) are the most present during Internet use. Even though the household is the place where the child most often uses the Internet without supervision, it is there that the presence of different mediators is greater. The presence of peers (friends and siblings) is the most mentioned at LAN houses. At school the teacher is by far the most present, contrasting with the more diffuse presence of different mediators at other locations.

With respect to Internet use in the household, nearly half the parents who own computers declared that the computer is located in the living room (44%), that is, a location to which every family member has easy access. Twenty-five per cent declared that the household computer is located in the parents’ bedroom. On the other hand, 21% of parents of five to nine-year-old children declared that the computer is located in the child’s bedroom, an environment that allows for greater privacy during online activities.

Another important aspect revealed by the ICT Kids 2010 survey refers to the different sources of ICT skills acquisition by children, which may be relevant in the promotion of media literacy. Twenty per cent of all children who had already used a computer declared they had learned to do so on their own. Teachers are the most mentioned in this process – cited by 37% of children who have used a computer – stressing the relevance of the school environment for this learning process. Relatives were mentioned by 27% of the children: the mother by 23% and siblings by 22%.

In terms of online activities, 90% of Brazilian children aged five to nine years are playing online games. Looking up information on the Internet is carried out by 35% of children, social networking was mentioned by 29%, and 25% declared that they chatted with friends or relatives via MSN.

Parental Mediation Patterns in Brazilian Households

The ICT Kids 2010 survey investigated the following strategies for parental mediation of their children’s online activities: (i) Blocking Internet websites; (ii) Controlling the time spent online; (iii) Sitting with the child when online; (iv) Talking to the child about Internet use; (v) Checking the websites visited by the child; (vi) Does not control or restrict Internet use. Among these, the most mentioned activity is talking to the child about Internet use (41% of parents/guardians); in second place is controlling the time spent online (34%); 31% of parents claimed to sit with the child when online; 21% declared that they do not restrict or control the child’s Internet use ; and finally, 20% check websites visited by the child, while blocking Internet websites was the least mentioned activity (only 15% of parents/guardians).

In terms of gender differences, girls in Brazil are more subject to parental mediation of Internet use than boys: 28% of parents claimed not to control or restrict boys’ Internet use but when it comes girls this percentage is halved to 14%.

Another factor that seems to influence parental mediation is the Internet experience of the parents themselves. The ICT Kids 2010 survey measured whether parents are Internet users (have used the Internet within the three previous months). The data revealed that parents who are Internet users tend to mediate more of their child’s online activities than those who are not active Internet users. Among parents who declared that they do not control or restrict the online activities of the child, 35% are not Internet users while only 16% are.

Similarly, the presence of a child’s mother or father during online activities is more frequent when parents are Internet users. Furthermore, parents whose children declared to have acquired ICT skills with them are predominantly Internet users. This suggests that the parents’ Internet skills and online experiences will have an impact on whether and how they will mediate their children’s use of the Internet. In this sense, media literacy is an important aspect of the discussion since, if well provided to the average citizen, it can affect mediation strategies.

Conclusion

Protecting children and providing a safer environment for online activities demand the discussion of a political agenda that approaches this challenge, and also require the definition of a proper framework to design public policy. This exploratory study contributes to the understanding of phenomena related to the mediation of young children’s Internet use in the Brazilian context by providing information to policymakers, educators and parents who seek to understand the risks of online activities.

Further research is necessary to evaluate the impact of parental mediation on Brazilian children’s online experiences to understand its effectiveness and to minimize children’s exposure to risks. Child online protection is currently insufficiently discussed in Brazil, and data on children’s Internet use and mediation will allow for the definition of a proper framework for public policy development there.