Contested connectedness in child custody narratives: Mobile phones and children’s rights and responsibilities

Abstract

New forms of information and communications technology (ICT) form parts of contemporary communication. At large, connected presence (e.g. through mobile phones) is seen as something positive that facilitates social connectedness in family life. Yet, there are also instances of what we call contested connectedness. This article analyses courtroom proceedings in child custody disputes. The analyses (from 68 audio-recorded high-conflict trials) highlight how mobile phone connectedness reshapes boundaries of public/private in post-separation family life. A number of cases were chosen to illuminate different ways in which connectedness through mobile phone contacts was contested by the child or one of the parents. Three cases document recurring ways in which children’s rights and responsibilities were intertwined in complex ways in post-divorce life and how mobile phone connectedness would not offer the child new rights, yet make them more responsible for monitoring their parents’ unresolved problems.