Digital family systems: How social media reshapes communication, rules, and everyday parent–adolescent interactions today

We examined how parental social media use (SMU) and family communication styles relate to adolescents’ adherence to social media rules and perceived family relationship quality. Drawing on several family systems theories, the research investigated whether traditional family frameworks adequately explain relational dynamics in digital contexts. Using a cross-sectional, correlational design, 259 parents/caregivers completed an online survey comprising sociodemographic questions, the Revised Family Communication Patterns (RFCP) scale, the customised DISRUPT measure of parental SMU, and the Evaluation of Social Systems (EVOS) scale. Multiple regression and moderation analyses tested two hypotheses: (1) that higher conversation orientation would predict greater adherence to family SMU rules, and (2) that parental SMU would positively predict perceived family relationship quality, moderated by gender. Results indicated no significant associations between communication style, SMU, and adherence, nor between parental SMU and family relationship quality across genders. These findings challenge the assumption that open communication or parental modelling directly influences adolescent digital behaviour. The results suggest that traditional family systems theories require conceptual adaptation to incorporate digital environments as active, multidirectional influences. Implications include the need for clinicians, educators, and policymakers to integrate digital literacy, co-constructed boundary-setting, and awareness of online peer and algorithmic influences into family-based interventions. Our study highlights the importance of reconceptualising contemporary family systems to reflect the pervasive influence of social media on adolescent autonomy, identity development, and relational dynamics, emphasising that the digital environment should be considered an active participant in family functioning.