How does young children's digital resilience operate within and across homes and communities? A thematic analysis of parents and early years educators' experiences

Hammond, Simon P. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0473-3610, D'Arcy, Jeanette, Jennings-Tallent, Laura, Prothero-Gibbs, Gray, El Gemayel, Sandra M. and Dyer, Harry T. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1629-730X (2026) How does young children's digital resilience operate within and across homes and communities? A thematic analysis of parents and early years educators' experiences. Information, Communication & Society. ISSN 1369-118X (In Press)

Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)

Abstract

This paper examines how young children aged 0-5 years build digital resilience within interconnected home and community contexts. While playing, exploring, and socialising are central to early experiential learning, little is known about how parents/carers and educators support children to recognise, manage, and recover from mistakes in connected environments. Conceptualising digital resilience as a socio-ecological construct, the paper draws on findings from the TYKES project to address this gap. Using a multi-method qualitative design, the study thematically analyses semi-structured interviews with parents/carers (n=17) and early years educators (n=5), alongside focus groups with educators across two settings (n=8), conducted using purposive sampling over a ten-month period (May 2024–February 2025). The paper argues that digital resilience is a relational and context-dependent process that unfolds across nested home and community environments, rather than solely within individual children or discrete settings. It highlights the importance of social capital and everyday interactions in shaping children’s emerging capacities to navigate online challenges. The paper contributes to the literature by demonstrating how parents/carers and educators actively cultivate digital resilience as an emergent capability, embedded in socio-ecological relations. The findings point to the need for more holistic and coordinated support across education systems, policymakers, industry, and governments to enable young children to thrive on the Internet.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Data availability statement: Data not currently publicly available due to ongoing academic work, however, will be available at reasonable request from SH.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	digital resilience,young children,tykes,early years education,das in place,data not currently publicly available due to ongoing academic work, however, will be available at reasonable request from sh.,2026 ,/dt/atira/pure/keyword/DAStatement/das_in_place
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Social Sciences > School of Education and Lifelong Learning
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Centres > Centre for Research on Children and Families Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Media Equality Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Comics Studies Research Group Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Groups > Critical Cultural Studies In Education
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	15 Oct 2026 15:08
Last Modified:	15 Oct 2026 15:08
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/104809
DOI:	10.1080/1369118X.2026.2750567

Actions (login required)

View Item