PARENTS AWARENESS AND RESPONSE TO RISKS IN CHILDRENS EXPOSURE TO THE INTERNET

Ogochukwu Ekwenchi, Allen Nnanwuba Adum, Henry Chigozie Duru

Abstract


This research investigated parents awareness and response to the risks in childrens exposure to the internet. Situated within the framework of the protection motivation theory of risk perception, the study was designed as a survey. The population was parents in Onitsha metropolis, South-East Nigeria, while a sample of 400 respondents was selected from this population via the multi-stage technique. A structured questionnaire was employed as an instrument of data collection, while data analysis was done using simple percentages. The study discovered that, to a significant extent, the parents are aware of their childrens exposure or non-exposure to the Internet; and that they are largely aware that this exposure potentially poses some risks to the children, particularly as it exposes them to Internet addiction, negative influence from online peers, crime and pornography. Furthermore, the study found that the parents have largely not taken actions to confront the potential risks posed by their childrens exposure to the Internet; and that among the parents who take actions to confront the risks, only a minority are convinced that these actions have been successful. The paper concludes that since the parents have largely failed to consciously intervene to regulate their childrens Internet use, they (the parents) may have left these risks to blossom fully, leaving these children at even greater danger, whereas such parental intervention, conversely, might have moderated the effect of this danger. The study recommended, among other things, the expansion of the ICT curriculum currently operating in primary and secondary schools to go beyond merely equipping pupils and students with the skill in the use of these technologies but also to guide them on the healthiest ways of using them for their optimal benefit.

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References


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