Children and the Internet: generational order revisited

Abstract

The article contributes to the theoretical debate around childhood as a generation, in view of the social changes brought about by the use of information and communication technologies by children and adults. It is based on a questionnaire survey to students in elementary education and on in-depth interviews with children and parents. The findings challenge both the notion of children as the dominated side in power/knowledge relations between generations and the technological determinism that sees them as digital natives, by highlighting the key role of family background, namely social divides.