Participation in media and ICTs: children’s interests and expectations

Abstract

The presence of analogue and digital media in the lives of children and adolescents reshapes discussions on child participation, with an emphasis on participation that is facilitated through screens. A qualitative descriptive study was carried out with 75 children and adolescents aged 7 to 14 years old in three cities (Barranquilla, Cali and Bogotá). The results suggest that children and adolescents have complex and diverse ways of thinking about participation that go beyond adult-centric and institutional concepts such as divisions and different scales. Children conceive their own participation in terms of leisure, socialization and cultural consumption activities. Theirs is a heterogeneous, convergent and multi-platform participation that includes activities such as creating content, liking, subscribing, browsing the web, doing homework, as well as watching videos, looking at pictures, playing games, having fun and socializing. These results show children’s interests, subjectivities and forms of socialization using media and ICTs.