Studying the datafication of Australian childhoods

Learning From a Survey of Digital Technologies in Homes With Young Children

Bibliographic Data

ID5716618
AuthorsLuci Pangrazio (0000-0002-7346-1313, Deakin University), Jane Mavoa (0000-0003-0132-8019, Deakin University, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume194
Issue1
Pages53-68
Publication date2025-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMedia International Australia (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1329-878X • E-ISSN: 2200-467X
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1329878x231162386
OpenAlexW4324070673
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited33

The home is a crucial site of young children's early encounters with digitally connected technologies. It is here that their emerging digital footprints are being formed and where digital data about them is being produced then collected, analysed and commodified in varying ways. While much is speculated about the rise of intelligent assistants, baby monitors, connected toys and goods, there is little quantitative information available about what sorts of devices households with children actually contain. This article reports on findings from an online survey of 504 Australian households with children aged 0-8 years. The survey was designed to capture a snapshot of internet connected devices and goods in households as a way of contextualising current discussions around the datafication of childhood. Results indicate that Australian households with young children are indeed highly connected, and this is primarily via devices already well domesticated into everyday family life such as TVs, computers and smartphones. We discuss several key points emerging from our findings, including: the safety and security of the household as a primary motivator for using smart home devices; the different rates of acceptance of the datafying objects in the home; and the Googlization of family life. We conclude the paper by outlining a research agenda that more accurately reflects the digital realities of Australian family life

Commodification · Everyday life · Internet privacy · Media studies · Political science · Sociology · The Internet · World Wide Web · Child Development and Digital Technology · Computer Science · Innovative Human-Technology Interaction · Law · Privacy, Security, and Data Protection · Psychology