Restrictive Mediation: The Interplay Between Parental Social Media Use, Attitudes, and Children’s Social Media Addiction

Abstract

This study investigates the complex relationship between parental social media use, attitudes toward technology, and restrictive mediation strategies in influencing children's social media addiction, grounded in Restrictive Mediation Theory. Using a quantitative approach with simple random sampling, data were collected from 385 parents in Lahore, Pakistan - a metropolitan region with high internet penetration. The survey-based research employed SPSS for statistical analysis to examine key variables: parental awareness of media risks (PAME), personal technology use (PUDT), restrictive mediation (RM), and child media addiction (MC). Findings revealed a strong positive correlation between PAME and RM (r = .55, p < .001), indicating that parents who perceive greater media risks implement stricter rules. However, restrictive mediation showed a paradoxical association with child addiction (β = .198, p = .013), suggesting that excessive control may lead to covert usage and higher addiction levels. Surprisingly, while PAME alone didn't significantly predict RM (β = -.093, p = .550), the inclusion of PUDT revealed a suppression effect, with tech-savvy parents demonstrating increased RM (β = .183, p = .027) alongside diminished PAME influence (β = -.152, p = .027). These results challenge conventional assumptions in Restrictive Mediation Theory, highlighting how parental technology literacy may complicate traditional risk-control dynamics in urban Pakistani households. The study underscores the need for more nuanced digital parenting approaches that balance media literacy with psychological autonomy in rapidly digitizing societies.