The use of mobile devices by 5th and 6th graders: parental supervision and risks

Digital devices such as smartphones and tablets have become easily accessible tools for schoolchildren born into the advancing knowledge society. However, most of them are unaware of the risks involved in this early use of Information and Communications Technology and are not prepared from a competence and maturity standpoint. So, the aim of this research is to discover the usage, frequency, and time employed by pupils in the use of mobile devices, the perception they have regarding the possible risks of their use, and to determine whether they are under parental supervision and control. A quantitative methodological research approach was applied, with a descriptive, non-experimental, and correlational methodological design. The instrument used was a questionnaire, administered to a sample of 273 pupils in the third cycle of Primary Education in the provinces of Cadiz, Cordoba and Huelva. The results reveal significant differences between parental control and the independent variables studied (sex, course, and educational level of the father and mother), which demonstrates the need to work with students on a critical attitude towards the media, the formative use of internet, and social networks.