1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«The research literature on parents’ Internet use is lacking in recent and contextual data on how mothers with income below the poverty threshold and with low educational attainment perceive and experience online information as a resource to support their roles as parents (Baker et al., 2017). The objective of [the] study was to understand these mothers’ perceptions concerning their experience of using online information in parenting and infant care.» (p. 1800)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«Forty mothers with at least one child aged eight months to eight years participated in this study. On average, the mothers had two children […] Their average age was 32 years, and none had a university degree. Twenty-four had a high school diploma […] or less, including vocational high school. Sixteen were following, or had completed, post-secondary programs […] Sixteen mothers were single, with an annual household income of less than 25,000 CAD; 22 were in couples with an annual household income of less than 40,000 CAD; and two were in couples with an annual household income between 40,000 CAD and 50,000 CAD […] Eighteen mothers reported that one of their children had a health or developmental problem. Finally, a majority of the mothers lived in an urban setting.» (p. 1800)

Instruments :
Guide d’entretien semi-directif

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse de contenu

3. Résumé

The study’s findings «showed that web-based information or online interactions are part of the lay referral system and change to some extent the way mothers consult their lay consultants (family or friends). Mothers with spouses and an active social network were more likely to use online information to complement that obtained from their entourage or from professionals than were mothers with a less active social network or who were more socially isolated. […] Almost all our participants were mothers who used the Internet frequently to contend with issues related to their child’s development or health. A large majority reported beginning their search for parental information online before consulting other information sources; as such, Internet searches were a priority and a continuous source of lay or expert advice. Most mothers routinely relied on Internet-based information before consulting proximal sources of advice in the lay referral system, such as family and friends. The Internet thus constituted a central component of their lay referral system, as friends and family members would have done before the arrival of Web 2.0.» (p. 1805-1806)