Child Online Safety and Parental Intervention: A Study of Zimbabwean Internet Users
Abstract
Objectives: Ensuring child online safety is a shared responsibility among parents, children, and educators. This article underscores the collaborative nature of the solution, exploring how parents and teachers can intervene in children’s online safety to ensure responsible digital citizenship among children. Prior work: Despite extensive research (Wright, 2011; Tapscott, 2009), there remains a gap in understanding the effectiveness of parental and teacher involvement across different contexts, particularly in Zimbabwe. Approach: A quantitative research approach was adopted. Two thousand seven hundred eighty children aged 8 to 18 were interviewed, constituting 55% girls and 45% boys across all ten provinces in Zimbabwe. Data was collected using questionnaires. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse data. Results: The main finding from the study was that children are more likely to receive help from parents than teachers when faced with online difficulties, explaining good versus bad websites, suggesting safe internet use, guiding online behaviour, and dealing with past online issues. Implications: The results underscore the important role parents play in ensuring children’s online safety in internet use. Value: The findings of this study will be used to develop educational programs and policies that will empower parents and teachers to create a safe digital environment for the younger generation.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Maxwell Sandada, Gift Kalisto Machengete, Rumbidzai Panavanhu, Lameck Chinodya, Makawonesu Mandipezano
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