Managing sharing is caring

Abstract

“Sharenting” is a usual habit for families in the digital age. While media outlets describe parents as inattentive and naïve about it, empirical data shows that many of them face digital dilemmas about this practice. Little is known, though, about the reflective practices parents engage in when trying to tackle these dilemmas. To fill this gap, this study explores how a parenting forum can work as an informal reflective and learning site where parents naturally discuss Social Media Dilemmas (SMDs) associated with sharenting. The contribution reports on findings from a thematic analysis of 1,626 posts from 47 discussion threads, where parents sought their peers’ advice and support to deal with these kinds of predicaments, lookingat how these naturally occurring conversations can help parents learn about and make sense of the new challenges posed by the evolving communication ecology in terms of governing their children’s digital footprints.