The Digital Playground: Navigating Technology in Early Childhood

It is deep research to understand the attitudes, behaviours and most pressing issues around tech use with kids ages 2-8 with both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data for this research was gathered through an online survey that was sent out to parents and early childhood educators (n=107), consisting of Likert scale, multiple choice, as well as open-ended questions. Quantitative measures assessed the estimated amount of screen time, access to devices and level of agreement with key statements about pros and cons of using screens as well as self-efficacy. Interview questions were open-ended to capture challenges, good experiences, and further thoughts. Five selected participants took part in more focused semi-structured interviews to generate further narrative data. Descriptive statistics: means, correlations and thematic analysis were used to analyse the quantitative and qualitative data respectively. The combined findings uncover the dissonance between acknowledged value of co-engagement and experiences with solo use, an interactional "curation crisis" in content selection, and a pernicious emotional calculus of guilt/anxiety that informs decision-making. This systematic capture of both measured behaviour and nuanced subjective experience of what it is to navigate within the digital playground constructs a more fully informed empirical foundation for recommending programs/interventions supporting mindful integration.