What role do social networking sites play in the intergenerational and parent/child relationships in...

8/6/2019 What role do social networking sites play in the intergenerational and parent/child relationships in everyday life?

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Research in Media, Cultural Studies andEducation

Spring 2010

MICHELLE CANNON

Write a critical account of theprocess of doing yourresearch project. This should include an analysis of the

different stages of your research, how the methods youused fit into the wider field of social research andparticularly research in Media and Cultural Studies.

FINALI confirm that I have read and understood the Institutes Code on Citing

Sources and Avoidance of Plagiarism.I confirm that this assignment is all my own work and conforms to this

Code.

Word count (number ofwords):

5319

Student evaluation submitted: N

Copy posted on Blackboard: Y


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Name of Tutor(s): Liesbeth de Block

MA in Media, Culture & CommunicationInstitute of Education, University of London

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Michelle CannonRMCSE Assignment Spring 2010

A fledging researcher could be forgiven for feeling disappointed that their

hard won social research findings must necessarily be met with what Back

terms epistemological suspicion (Gray, 2003: 176). However, unpacking

the status quo in the quest to examine: who can know what about whom,

by what means and to what purpose (Gray, 2003: 34) is a task vested

with great responsibility and fraught with high levels of contingency: thus

it is with self-reflexive modesty that the following qualitative research is

presented. I propose to show how an examination of a slice of everyday

life can reveal the macro in the micro: that the repertoires selected, re-

worked and mobilised at the micro-level are indicative of the wider

culture (Gray, 2003:166) and that a constructivist approach to knowledge

ultimately benefits human experience.

The field of Media and Cultural Studies is as a continually self-correcting

process and a contributory factor in this sense of ongoing evolution, is the

interactive and participatory affordances of digital technology. Many of

the traditional boundaries that once separated points within the cultural

cycle: Production > Text > Audience, are being dismantled. Indeed some

academics such as Merrin & Gauntlett argue that approaches in the field

should be universally revolutionisedso as to embrace digital creativity

and technological advance. As a mechanism to counter what some regard

as over-determining tendencies, one might employ measured, imaginative

and flexible ethnographic research, a methodology which is mindful of its

sociological and anthropological roots, ready to grasp contradiction and

anomaly, and which resists a proneness to essentialism and

homogenization.

Research Question

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I have chosen Social Networking Sites (SNS) as my research topic. I will

examine the decision-making processes in establishing the research

question, the research design, the data gathering procedures, and then

move on to data analysis within the chosen theoretical framework ofthematic discourse analysis. Epistemological and ontological observations

will be made to assess research methodologies. I also hope to be able to

extrapolate certain of Benedicts patterns of culture or links between

discourses in relation to the topic of SNS, in an attempt to bear witness to

our current historical configuration, to Williams structure of feeling.

I am aware that much scholarly thought on SNS is centred on young

people themselves and so chose to look at the phenomenon from the

parents point of view, as the key stakeholder in the childs personal

formation. Given the relative freedom that SNS afford, I am interested in

how their use impact on parent/child relations. I am also aware that my

choice of research question is inextricably bound up with discourses on

modern parenting, teen othering, the role of technology in the home and

what constitutes the public and the private in the domestic space. The

question I am asking is: What role do social networking sites play in the

intergenerational and parent/child relationships in everyday life?.

We are living a unique moment historically and the implications of the

discrepancy between adult perspectives on new media and youth

experiences (Herring, 2008: 83) may be significant. Presently our so-

called Internet Generation either rememberthe pre-internet era or have

at least a dual consciousness via theparentof the same; they are thus

a generation in transition:

a true Internet Generation, which still lies some years in the

future, will pave the way for changes in media attitudes and

consumption that will be more thoroughgoing, normalized, and

hence more difficult to question. (Herring, 2008: 72)

Legitimate as this question is, I still find myself struggling with the notion

of what gives the researcher the right to investigative social enquiry and

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subsequent interpretation? Ones slant will unavoidably be informed by

subjectivity which is a product of the environment and the discourses one

inhabits. It is therefore incumbent on the researcher to explicitly

acknowledge that their purpose is to suggesta version of the truth(Gray, 2003:21) from a particular vantage point, rather than seek fixed

universal truths. Stuart Hall is reassuring in his approach to this

problematic suggesting that researchers can never be absolved from the

responsibility of transmitting new theories and conceptual insights

because:

one moves from one detotalized or deconstructed problematic to the

gains of another, recognizing its limitations Because what is at stake

really matters. (http://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-

studies-and-its.html).

However, Halls insistence on making a difference and social research as a

force for good is far from idealistic; continually living with tension (ibid),

wrestling with conundra (ibid) and struggling with the angels (ibid) are

the cornerstones of his theoretical framework.

Research Design & Data Gathering

Bryman (2008: 377) quotes Guba and Lincoln in his assessment of how to

judge qualitative research. As regards trustworthiness, they propose that

credibility, transferability, dependabilityand confirmabilityare the criteria

by which studies should be evaluated, in contrast with the quantitatively

associated criteria ofreliabilityand validity. The former four criteria

embody a sense of elasticity absent from the latter two - which sits well

with the non-realist view that absolute truths about the social world are

simply unfeasible. Hence qualitative research is favoured in the study of

empirical data, with its emphasis on depth and meaning evoked by

language and gesture, on drilling down into an instance so as to

inductivelysuggest a theory that might explain our structure of feeling.

A quantitative research strategy, with its emphasis on breadth, the

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collecting of numerical data and as Brymanhas identified -

measurement, causality, generalization and replication (2008: 140) - is

best suited to deductivelyproving an existing, perhaps scientific

hypothesis, one with a remit to measure broad societal changes acrosspopulations.

The ontological position of the quantitative researcher is influenced by

positivism, a scientific approach where one regards material phenomena

as the given, as a separate entity with which one can experiment and

from which one can draw conclusions. Qualitative research is predicated

on interpretivism and constructionism, it seeks to analyse the world view

of itsparticipants emically, seeing social phenomena as the outcome of

human interactions; it is an attempt to disentangle an altogether messier

set of data. Furthermore, both methods can inform one another through

triangulation, and are not mutually exclusive.

I chose a mixed method approach combining the qualitative method of

semi-structured interview with the more quantitatively associated method

of online survey. The latter decision was to assess the method as a

process, to increase the numbers of participants so as to check

assumptions made in the initial interviews and to possibly gain access to

the responses of young people without the logistical and ethical

complexities of face-to-face interviewing. Setting the questions for the

survey was a time-consuming process as I was keen to set the register to

be accessible to both adult and child. In retrospect, this remit was perhaps

rather too ambitious: of the few child respondents, some questions were

missed out.

I hoped that filming participants would add visual and as well as vocal

richness to the data but there was also an element of indiscriminate Im

filming because I can about the decision and concluded that in fact it only

really added value to one of the more emotive interviews (see Appendix

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4) . As filming can cause anxiety I was as organised as possible, especially

given that my research question incorporated issues of technology.

Because of my relationship with the participants (see Appendix 4) it was

important to establish ethical boundaries and informed consent, to avoidjeopardizing existing friendships and preserve the integrity of the findings;

this was addressed by introducing a signed letter of consent (see

Appendix 3). Having re-emphasised the main considerations of non-

judgmental confidentiality and anonymity, I indicated that they were

helping me with my studies which made for a more informal atmosphere. I

also introduced SNS as the general focus in the hope that parents

wouldnt feel in the spotlight on more loaded questions. Photo elicitation

also helped in this regard.

What was odd during the interviews was having to temporarily assume a

new identity with friends and acquaintances, to operate in a new

dimension and make a lateral shift into unfamiliar territory. They in turn

were submitting to playing a role, drawing on a core of realism embedded

in their cultural repertoires. One could argue that the perceived

artificiality of the situation is in fact replicated in real-life interviews. As

Hammersley and Atkinson (Gray, 2003: 85) have noted, the interviewer is

intellectually poised between familiarity and strangeness. It is just one

of various dialogues engaged in and identities assumed that eventually

comprise multilayered and partially positioned written findings (Gray,

2003: 183).

It was difficult at times to keep parents on task i.e. to steer them back to

SNS and away from articulations about computers in general; I did

consider changing the question in light of this tendency but decided to

include it as part of the findings. Furthermore, there was the risk of a) the

participants telling me what they thought I wanted to hear and b) my

leading the participant with inappropriate knowing asides or telling

phraseology and intonation. Remaining neutral presents a real challenge

for the interviewer, especially as one is likely to have lived and breathed

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the research material and may already have anticipated certain

responses. Theres a fine line between encouraging a natural, revelatory

conversation and as Connell suggests making sure you harvest your

exploratory crop to produce the necessary high theoretical yield (Gray,2003: 160). It is helpful to keep in mind, as one fends off thoughts that

one is merely pursuing facile common sense, C. Wright Mills 1959

comment that the ethnographic research process is a scholarly craft,

(Gray, 2003: 5) the accumulative impact of which could have dramatic

consequences in the wider world.

I chose Pam and Andrew to interview as the mother claims no knowledge or

interest in computers and I wondered how the use of SNS might play out in

their household.

Mentioning celebrity

earlier, reminded me of

how much like a day

time chat show host I felt

during this interview: I

was aware of playing

down my own middle-

class upbringing so as

not to come across as

patronizing to a couple

whose family

backgrounds had been working class. This mindset could lead to

accusations of exoticism on my part, but all one can do as a researcher is

acknowledge ones social positioning, the malaise therein, and move on

using as rigorous and principled a procedure as possible, rather than be

stuck in some kind of politically correct, guilt-ridden impasse deemed too

contaminated by bias or privilege to be of any social value.

I set up what a certain sector of society might call a clichd photo of my

daughter in her media-rich bedroom. I now wish I had given more thought

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to the embedded intertextuality of photos and their potential as catalysts

for memory recall or more oblique thoughts. In retrospect I could have

used a variety of different genres of imagery: headlines, young people

reading books, some Facebook chat text or more subtle imagery whichmight have engendered more surprising responses and fewer informed by

shared assumptions, although the latter warrant as much analysis.

Apart from wording the introductory email and establishing the questions,

the process of gathering data via the online survey

(http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W7JWMHRaccessed 31 May 2010) was

streamlined and efficient and I received 20 responses from around 50

emailed addresses. The questions were qualitative in nature as people

were required to answer mainly open questions. Most responses were

short and to-the-point, so in terms of the usefulness of the data, the

relative ease and economy with which these answers were garnered must

be weighed against the value of thick (Geertz), intense descriptions

offered by the interview. The steady trickle of answers coming through

felt easily-won in comparison with the complex drama, emotional

unevenness and shifts in identity inherent in the interview process.

Data Analysis

The aim was to explore the impact SNS may or may not be having on

traditional family relations and hierarchies, on: the moral economy of the

household(Silverstone and Hirsch, 1992: 16). By dismantling the

participants language use and patterns of delivery and through the

processes of thematic discourse analysis and triangulation, themes can be

established and cross-referenced with evidence from different data

sources. In this way one might arrive at a modest interpretation of Gupta

& Fergusons culturally chaotic present (Gray, 2003: 24) Gillespie &

Toynbee maintains that: All knowledge is textual in the sense that there

is nothing that can be known beyond language and signs(2006: 183)

which indicates the loaded and non-neutral nature of language in all its

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forms. They go as far as to suggest that there is barely a distinction

between texts and the world as: social reality has indeed been pulled

up into the text (ibid), thus the text is constitutive of reality rather than

merely a reflection of it . This claim is born out by the parents tendencyto homogenize computer use and SNS: the practice of the former seems

to merge with the hybrid text/practice characteristics of the latter.

Conscious efforts were made to steer the conversation back to SNS in

particular, such was the identification of SNS with teen computer use in

general.

I asked if parents saw any similarities between their own social

experiences as a child and those of their children and the answer was

emphatically negative: No! not at all, no, no, No comparison!, None

at all!(Interview 1), Yes, in that hes human and so am I, but thats

probably the extent of it(Interview 2), !! no comparison. No mobile,

home phone use restricted no internet (Survey). This is evidence to

suggest that young people tend to be othered by adults in the

anthropological sense and that their respective difference is a key

defining element in parental identity. However, the difference that might

once have been associated with a morepowerful gaze of the observer

over the observed (eg. the coloniser over the savage, male over female,

heterosexual over homosexual, white over black) has been emasculated

or neutralised in this context. Parents often regard themselves as digitally

inferior and this is a cause for concern as regards parental status and

identity: I dont deal with computers, Im not up to computers or

anything(Interview 1). Furthermore there was an admission of guilt

(Interview 2) for not being as technologically adept as one should be, as

well as a reference to the child being really kindfor helping the mother

out, indicating a certain dislodgement and reassignment of roles.

There is a similar sense of dislocation and ambivalence inherent in public

discourses on the role of the domestic computer: it is as ubiquitous an

office or educational tool as it is a source of leisure and entertainment; it

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is a liberating, labour-saving device but we all spend too long on it; it

facilitates private communication while at the same time is the conduit

through which danger invades the security of the home. Similarly, SNS are

a site of struggle between the celebratory - a liberating forum for teenexperimentation with identity and social competences - and the

condemnatory an unregulated, sinister, virtual world populated by

predatory users eager to corrupt the innocent.

The following transcript illustrates how parents seek to navigate polarised

discourses - all jostling for supremacy within family value structures. I

have chosen to focus on the following snippet of transcript from Interview

1 which offers a rich seam of social discourses and then bring in data from

other sources as they are pertinent, which either challenge or reinforce

findings. Pam and Andrew are looking at the above photo of the typical

2010 middle-class teen (clips of footage:

):

Pam: doing their homework, on the computer, telephone near their ear, thats the

generation of today!

Pams exclamatory summing up is a complex mix ofreliefat seeingsomething familiar in the photo, disappointmentat all thedistractions and indignation at its representativeness of todaysyouth. Her dismissive tone reveals a tendency to exoticise youngpeople whose media use is seen as a barrier to learning. These arewell-rehearsed discourses useful to both teens and capitalist marketforces; the former enjoying feelings of empowerment and sub-cultural belonging, the latter reaping the benefits of continuous sub-cultural reinvention and the panoply of digital must-have purchases.

Andrew: and Im studying really hard but dont worry mum and dad (laughs),everythings OK!

Andrew exerts his paternal authority by mimicking his children andacknowledging that he will not be taken in by their assumeddissembling. Meanwhile we learn that the children are managingtheir parents fears and suspicions, further reinforcing socialdifference and their relatively newly acquired subject position thatof still being dependent but still in a position of power.

Pam: That is like looking at them, isnt it?

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The photo is a good eliciting technique for Pam as it gives hersomething concrete to talk about; it is the catalyst through whichshe can express her concerns as if they were packaged pictoriallyand unthreateningly in her hands. Throughout the interview, thecouple seem to present a strong united front to tackle the kids in

relation to their assumed familial roles.

Andrew: it is yeah.Pam: Mind you thats like looking at Jade and Jades 26, thats how she was, not thecomputer, but she was at the phone n the tele on n the stereo on didnt she, whileshe was doing her

We see that media have historically played a role in the familydynamic, arousing similar feelings of anxiety for Pam even backthen. We sense how powerless she feels in the face of perceivedtechnological progress.

Int: So, tele, stereo,Pam: Yeah while she was doing her Int: computer, homework Pam: YeahInt: So what are your thoughts on that?

I am eager to empathise with Pam, to probe her anxieties, and sopause slightly to allow those thoughts to bed in before asking herto expand.

Pam: Well I always worry, I get really anxious, cos I think theyre not studying andtheyre not doing and theyre not and theyre not putting enough into it thatthey could put into it but then Andrew has a different outlook on it, dont you Andrew?

Worry is the main protagonist in Pams narrative, as revealed inher words, repetitions, hesitations and appeals to her husband.There is a real sense of insecurity and agitation at wastedopportunities: she may be drawing on her own lack of engagementat school and her heartfelt aspirations for her children.

Andrew: I wait for Parents Evening and hit em hard, Facebook off, tele off, phonesoff, boom, if they tell me theyre doing it, theyre big enough and brave enough I say.

SO when it comes to reports coming in and theyre not as good as they were, thenthats the end of Facebook and all the rest of it, so

Andrews role is to meter out punishment, but before doing so, hedefers to the perceived greater authority of the school. The obstacleto academic progress must be removed or at least the threat ofremoval must be made clear for parental authority and the socialorder to re-assert itself. The extreme nature of Andrews responsehere and Pams deference to it, suggests that he may be acting outscenes from his own childhood; his voice and rhythm of speechchanges and he almost seems to adopt a new personality.

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I am suspicious of Andrews tone and ask him if these measureshave yet been taken:

Int: mmm and that and thats happened already? Youve already kind of Andrew: No we havent. Finbar weve had to say no more computer, weve taken

the tele out of his room and stuff. Cabrini has been quite lucky so far. Touch wood!

From a position of resolute disciplinary action, we find that in realitythere is a contradictory, more dilute set of circumstances. Thissuggests that computer use has gradually been accepted as thenorm: the older brother isnt a stranger to sanctions, whereas theyounger sister is getting away with it. Andrew attributes this toluck but in fact it might just be the slow but persistent agency ofsocial processes, the gradual normalization of SNS and computeruse, as ritualistic and endemic as the television being on all the timein certain households and the family phone being in constant use,

as he references later.

Pam: Well yeah but I do, I do get worried about how much she goes on Facebookcos shell go on it straight, when she comes from school. Shes been with her friendsall day, as soon as she gets in, shell put her bag down and she logs onto thecomputer and it does worry me but then Im not really up to computers, so I youknow she says: Oh Mum, Im doing so and so

Pam relates the after-school ritual with quizzical resignation. Itseems that discourses around computers render her parentallyimpotent necessitating a new level of mother/daughter trust, but in

conditions which are unintelligible to her. The implication here is aninternalizing and resisting of circulating discourses: sadly for Pam,they constitute a sense of self in perpetual conflict.

Andrew: Yeah but its the same as with ... I used to get in and phone my friends fromschool, when I was allowed to use the phone, cos in my in our when we wereyoung teenagers that was it, youd come in straight from school and on the phone toyour friends and mum and dad would say: But youve just been with them all day? its using different gadgets to do the same thing innit communicate really butthey do spend too long on computers a bit of that could be cos I wanna use thecomputers.

Roseasserts that: Discursive formations have structures but thatdoes not necessarily imply that they are logical or coherent (2003:164). Andrew illustrates this by contradicting what he said earlier.Whereas before he was adamant that there was no correlationbetween his and his childrens social experiences, he now claims adistinct similarity between present and past forms ofcommunication. Its not unusual to change ones mind but whatsinteresting here is that having conceded ground, he then feels theneed to retreat to his previously safe authoritarian subject position:but they do spend too long on computers (for his wifes sake?) and then

introduces an additional layer of interpretation in the form ofhierarchical power issues a bit of that could be cos I wanna use the computers.

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A further complicating factor is the possibility that he was drawingon interpretative repertoires (Buckingham, 1993) by vocalizingthe accepted boundaries responsible parents should impose ontheir childrens computer use and his perceptions of what he

thought I wanted to hear for my research. He knows my personalstance on aspects of SNS from earlier conversations. Thisforegrounds the impact ofcontextwhilst interpreting data and theneed to monitor it. It also begs the question as to how differentlythe couple may have interviewed on a one-to-one basis, without thepressures of identity politics.

Int: Well yes ... a few kind of power issues maybe

This is an example of the interviewer inadvertently leading theinterviewee with her own intellectual baggage effecting a somewhat

defensive, retaliatory response.

Andrew: Yeah but I tell them to get off and they do, but er but they do I mean I dothink Cabrini uses Facebook more than I would likeInt: What do you think she does on it?Andrew: Just Rubbish!

This is a key question in terms of how parents interpret theirchildrens activities. Andrews comment echoes d. boyds work onSNS where she comments on parents tendency to devalue teensonline activities, but she then suggests that this clash of values may

be unwarranted:

It is easy to lambaste teens for accepting the cultural norms of thein crowd, but social categories and status negotiation are coreelements in teen life (boyd, 2008: 133)

Jo in Interview 2 understands this, and respects her sons privacyand exploratory practices on SNS:

Its a private place for him and I remember as a child having lotsof private places from my parents and I dont think he wants that

being scrutinized by his mum its very much in his control

Pam is less accommodating of SNS and anxiety pervades hernarrative, this firmly aligns her with media discourses on the riskfactors:

I dont deal with computers or anything but I hear stories and I read about peoplewho get bullied on the computer and I that worries me cos I think, you knowand I say to Cabrini Be Careful what you say

Indeed the parents in Interview 4 have the same concerns, with talk

ofstalkingtheir children, albeit flippantly, when they start using SNS

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in order to retain a measure of control and to fend offthe big badworld.

Many of the largely middle-class survey responses below share Josmore celebratory, less alarmist view, highlighting continuity in

contemporary adolescence:

As a parent I would say get online join in and interact.

it is as natural as when we used to talk to our friends on the telephone

SNS just replaces other influencing matters in family dynamics in the past. Nothingnew. Just modern.

Some revealed a negotiated approach to SNS with a but proviso:

Drives me mad but I do see the benefits of our daughter feeling like she belongs tothis 21st century.

I tweet and Facebook but dont stay online long

others more direct control and surveillance. All approaches bothpositive and negative were articulated from within the acceptedmores of modern parenting:

Children (12 and 10) not allowed on it. I want them to be around 'in person'.Homework and work already takes-up too much time. Maybe an hour a day on the

internet when they're older and more at weekends.

Lots of arguments about getting off it and doing homework or chores in the house.

time spent with face in a laptop and/or blackberry can be irritating to parents. Fullattention of the child is not gained.

It is also interesting to see in both data sets the involvement of theschool as arbiter and judge in what is at root a domestic issue (seeAndrews comments above):

I think parents think this generation of children is very computer savvy but a recentthread on facebook was reported to the head of year at my school and the mostunpleasant things uncovered ending in an exclusion.

Its evident that as the outside is increasingly construed as a placeof danger (ref. Interview 4 going outside, going online youre exposed tothe unknown) more time and money is spent embellishing the homeas a sanctuary with media-rich leisure activities in compensation(Livingstone, 2009: 14). Such encroachments are complicatedfurther by the online risk interpellation, tapping into parentalconcerns over the safety of unsupervised children using social

media. SeeThe Sun ,The Guardian andThe Daily Mail headlinesfomenting fear and suspicion:

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I always worry about her meeting strangers online. It's so easy to excite and tempther into new worlds; but my main strategy is to encourage real friends, so that shedoesn't feel inclined to look further.

Worry about cyber bullying / chat room fakes / exposing personal details

SNS also opens up a whole new avenue for bullying which is worrying.

Hall would argue that as audiences decode the medias hyperbolicreinforcement of the dangers of SNS, they are at the same timeabsorbing the encoded message - that we need protecting and thatthis will be enacted via existing power structures with the overalleffect of sustaining social difference and social order. Conversely,teen responses offer a rather more anodyne, balanced outlook,problematising and neutralising negative adult perceptions:

Basically...it's just a way of un-boreding myself.

I use it for sharing photos with my friends (only friends) chatting with friends, and

running a fan page for me and my friend music

Commenting on photos and light hearted banter.

But a little interaction with friends and having a larrfff can't be that bad, can it?

In summary I would say that the 3 survey responses from childrenwere of more value in terms of challenging prevailing assumptionsand that if I were to pursue the research study I would design asurvey to be completed by children aged between 12 (i.e. those whoflout Facebook age rules) and 16 (the old hands). Although thestudy focused on the parents, I believe that the data would havebeen theoretically richer by including the young persons voice in a

more concerted way. However, the logistical problems of includingchildren in this research were the key constraints.

Clearly SNS are a site of meaning-making struggle between the

generations, one where a complex nexus of discourses vie for value, if

only provisional, within our sense of self and in ourpresentation of self,

within certain contexts and in relation to certain institutions. The result of

this dichotomy is sensed in Pams tension, visually and vocally: in the

insecurity of her hesitations and in the unwavering clarity and safety of

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her convictions. Foucault would interpret Pams state as the embodiment

of a transient endpoint in a matrices of power relations:

the points, knots or focuses of resistance are spread over time andspace at varying densities producing cleavages in a society that

shift about furrowing across individuals themselves, cutting them

up and remoulding them, marking off irreducible regions in them, in

their bodies and minds the swarm of points of resistance

traverses social stratifications and individual unities (Storey, 2006:

315)

Conclusion

It is hoped that this research project has been a principled exploration

(Gray, 2003: 176) of discourses which normally remain dense and

obscure. Historically generations have had conflicting perspectives on

social change, as has been evidenced in the data: some parents

appreciate the continuities therein, others are consumed with

generational difference, but Herring reminds us of the interdependence

and worth of both perspectives:

Youth cannot easily comprehend the magnitude of this change,

whereas adults cannot easily forget it. Both direct immersion in

experience and a historical comparative perspective are important,

however, in moving into the future.(Herring, 2008: 83)

Beck talks of a current of detraditionalisations (Livingstone, 2008: 13) in

society which are felt perhaps more keenly in the home than anywhere

else. Traditional domestic values and mores appear subsumed by

commerce and new technologies and local institutions are even

implicated in domestic ruptures. It seems to me that anxiety is built into

the status quo which keeps us focusing inwards whilst casting around for

blame, blame that is so often placed on media channels. This imbalance is

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then socially processed and becomes normalized via the medium through

which it was manufactured. The research process calls a halt on this

momentum illuminating its compact layers, and in so doing opens up new

and unexpected avenues of enquiry, not only for the cultural benefit ofsociety but also the intellectual benefit of the interviewer, equipping

him/her for deeper investigation.

The more that is invested in qualitative research, blind alleys (Hall) and

all, the more disposed we are to question the notion of what is normal

and to reaffirm that the socially engineered macro is ever present in the

minutiae of everyday living and social wellbeing. The fact that social

research findings and to a certain extent methodologies seem to date

surprisingly quickly is a measure of how important it is for the process to

be continually revised and refined as well for the researcher to be

increasingly self-reflexive, the better to secure findings of inspiring and

enduring resonance.

___________________________________________________________________________

Bibliography

boyd, d(2008) Why Youth h Social Network Sites: The Role of NetworkedPublics in Teenage Social Life in D. Buckingham (ed) Youth, Identity andDigital Media, MacArthur Foundation Series

Benedict, R (1934) Patterns of Culture

Bryman, A (2008) Social Research Methods

Buckingham, D (1993) Children Talking Television

Gillespie M & Toynbee, J(2006)Analysing Media TextsGray, A (2003) Research Practice for Cultural Studies

Herring, S C (2008) Questioning the Generational Divide: TechnologicalExoticism and Adult Constructions of Online Youth Identity in D.Buckingham (ed) Youth, Identity and Digital Media, MacArthur FoundationSeries

Livingstone, S (2009) Children and the Internet

Rose, G (2007) Visual Methodologies

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Silverstone & Hirsch (1992) Consuming Technologies: Media and

Information in Domestic Spaces

Storey, J (2008) Cultural Theory and Popular Culture A Reader 4th Edition

Appendix 1 - Web References

Appendix 2 - Interview Questions and rationale

Appendix 3 - Informed Consent Form

Appendix 4 - Notes on participants

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Appendix 1

Web References:

Stuart Hall quotation:

http://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-studies-and-its.html

Location of interview video footage:http://www.madcan.com/michelle_interviews.mov

Location of online survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W7JWMHR

Sun Facebook headline:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2891220/Facebook-killer-

Peter-Chapman-not-a-risk-raped-girl-was-told.html

The Guardian article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/feb/24/social-networking-site-changing-childrens-brains

The Daily Mail article:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1149207/How-using-Facebook-raise-risk-cancer.html

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http://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-studies-and-its.htmlhttp://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-studies-and-its.htmlhttp://www.madcan.com/michelle_interviews.movhttp://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W7JWMHRhttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2891220/Facebook-killer-Peter-Chapman-not-a-risk-raped-girl-was-told.htmlhttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2891220/Facebook-killer-Peter-Chapman-not-a-risk-raped-girl-was-told.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/feb/24/social-networking-site-changing-childrens-brainshttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/feb/24/social-networking-site-changing-childrens-brainshttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1149207/How-using-Facebook-raise-risk-cancer.htmlhttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1149207/How-using-Facebook-raise-risk-cancer.htmlhttp://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-studies-and-its.htmlhttp://cultstud.blogspot.com/2007/09/stuart-hall-cultural-studies-and-its.htmlhttp://www.madcan.com/michelle_interviews.movhttp://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W7JWMHRhttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2891220/Facebook-killer-Peter-Chapman-not-a-risk-raped-girl-was-told.htmlhttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2891220/Facebook-killer-Peter-Chapman-not-a-risk-raped-girl-was-told.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/feb/24/social-networking-site-changing-childrens-brainshttp://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/feb/24/social-networking-site-changing-childrens-brainshttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1149207/How-using-Facebook-raise-risk-cancer.htmlhttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1149207/How-using-Facebook-raise-risk-cancer.html


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Appendix 2

Interview Questions and rationale:

What role do social networking sites play in the intergenerational andparent/child relationships in everyday life?

Looking back at your own childhood, what memories do you haveofsocialising with friends?

With this general discursive question Id like the participant toreflect on their own memories of being a child and the contexts inwhich they hung out with friends, so as to be able to compare theirown experience with that of their children.

Do you see any parallels between yoursocial experiences as achild and those of your child / children?

By asking this question I am encouraging the participant to seepossible continuities in terms of childhood experiences rather thanthe more prevalent differences that so often characterise discoursesaround young people growing up these days.

SHOW PHOTOGRAPH OF A CHILDS BEDROOM MEDIA TOOLKIT INUSE

Tell me about yours and your childs use of media andtechnology both inside and outside the home.

This is a broad open-ended question to elicit as much information aspossible about the range of media used in the family. It willintroduce the idea of media use and establish the parents views ontechnology. If social networking sites (SNS) are not mentioned atthis stage, I will raise the topic and ask them what they perceive asthe advantages and disadvantages of the use of SNS in particular.

This may reveal the extent to which technology as a whole isexoticised / othered by parents and may contribute to a sense ofdistance between parent and child.

Is the use of SNS an accepted part of the daily routine for somemembers of the family?

From the general advantages and disadvantages of SNS I move to amorepersonal and specific account of their childs perceived use ofSNS to reveal how parents really feel about it. Depending on howforthcoming the participant is I would explore some of the following

strands: What does the parent think happens during SNS onlineactivity? Does the parent in fact also use SNS? What for? Are SNS

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ever used as a means ofcontrolling the child in any way? Are thereever any arguments about the use of SNS? Any particular relevantstory they can tell from current home situation or from their ownchildhood? Are you ever invited in to participate in / witness theirchilds online activity? How do they respond to their childs

multitasking with homework?

If we consider a 9-year-old child who is eager to create their firstFacebook profile, what advice would you give to the parents?

The answer to this question may shed light on understandings thatwill be passed on to parents who may not want to limittheir childssocial development but who also wish to keep their child safe.

In the context of rapid advances in new media and

communication technology, do you have any particular hopesand fears for the ways in which people relate to each other orsociety might develop as a whole?

Asking this rounding off question at the end is an opportunity forthe participant to voice any other seemingly random feelings /observations on social changes and their child.

I would ask if the participant had any questions to ask for me at thisstage in an effort to ease off and withdraw gently from the focusbeing on them if I do end up videoing Id leave the camera

running for as long as I could comfortably get away with in case anyfurther gems were offered in a less formal: No but really.environment.

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Appendix 3

Informed Consent Form

Face-to-Face Semi-Structured Interview: SocialNetworking Sites

Name: _____________________________ Date: _________________________

Location: ___________________________

I am conducting research regarding the role social networking sites play inthe intergenerational parent/child relationship in every day life for theSocial Research module of my MA studies. Three or fourcouples/individuals will be included in the study. Participation is voluntary

and will require answering a few questions about you, your past andcurrent media related activities as well as those of your children. THEREARE NO RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWERS and you will in no way be judged onaccount of what you say.

Your answers will be kept confidential and individual names will not beincluded. You can refuse to answer any question or to stop the interviewat any time. Withdrawing from the project will not result in any negativeconsequences for you. Essentially your participation poses no risks to you.

Your answers and/or video footage may be used anonymously - in agroup discussion and may also be included in submitted written work. Ifyou wish to see how you have been represented before submittal of anywork, this can be arranged. Any interview data will be securely stored onmy laptop and destroyed after completion of the course. Further consentwill be sought if data is to be placed in the public domain.

The interview will take approximately 20 minutes of your time. If you havequestions about the project you may ask me at any time.

Do you wish to participate?

By your signature below, you agree to participate in the study.

_____________________________________________________________________Participant signature / Date

Interviewers signature / Date

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Appendix 4

Background information on Participants & RecordingProcesses

Interview 1 Pam and Andrew

A middle-aged couple who have lived in Hackney, East London all theirlives. Pam was born in the Caribbean and Andrew has a rich Irish heritage.Their marriage was very much frowned upon in both their family circles.They both come from a working class background. Pam worked on themarkets from an early age and fell pregnant as a teenager. She hasworked as a child minder for many years. She has 2 children with Andrew a girl aged 13 and a boy aged 17. Andrew went to university as an adultand now works as a social worker in the field of family welfare. I met Pam

and Andrew through my involvement with our childrens secondary schoolParent Teacher Association. I took over the PTA Chairs position fromAndrew and have known them for nearly 3 years.

The interview took place at their home in the kitchen; from experience,the site of much chat and general socialising. They suggested this as avenue and were clearly happier to be interviewed in this context thananywhere else. They are a particularly welcoming and hospitable couple.As it turned out Pam seemed more relaxed in front of the camera thanAndrew and it felt more like a chat than a formal interview. What wasgained by videoing Pam and Andrew was an insight into the dynamics oftheir relationship as there was more interaction than in the interviewreferenced below. I would say that emotions are more readily captured onfilm than simply audio and Pams anxieties through gesture and facialexpressions were all the more deeply transmitted through this medium.We also saw how Andrew leant back and allowed Pam to lead much of theinterview process, which is suggestive of their parenting styles.

Interview 2 Jo

A middle-aged, middle-class professional woman who I have known for 14

years and with whom I used to be neighbours. We met at ante-natal yogaand have provided each other with much needed support over the years. Ivalue her insight, articulateness and what I regard as down-to-earthmotherly wisdom. She has been a London theatre director and a BBC filmand documentary maker and now works in Arts funding. She is a singlemum with 2 sons aged 13 and 18. The former has severe learningdifficulties, the latter was privately educated to 16, is now at a stateschool doing ALevels and has an offer of a place at Cambridge.

The interview was at my house in Hackney, East London. Jo needed to beaway from her family context to be able to devote all her attention to the

interview. She went into work-mode and helped set up the camera andimproved the lighting; although shes a good friend, the process felt more

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formal and business-like. She was the most composed in front of thecamera unsurprisingly and I remain unconvinced by how much wasgained by videoing Jo, that would not have been gained by simplyrecording her voice.

Interview 3 Mia

A 38 year old middle-class woman who has worked as a manager in thecharity sector for most of her professional career. We met while ourchildren were at nursery together and we have known one another for 10years. Another insightful lady with strong views. She is a single mum witha 13 year old daughter. The interview took place in Mias front room inHackney, East London shed just moved house and there was barely anyfurniture to sit on. Just in case we need reminding of the everydayness ofthe material and the context of the normal under discussion, there was awashing machine going on in the background. She seemed confidentduring the interview but then collapsed into fits of giggles when I turnedoff the camcorder. Although her answers were genuine, she felt put on thespot and tongue-tied in places, because of the filming. She is the onlyparticipant for whom I feel audio only may have worked better.Interestingly, she did a lot of drama in the past and perhaps this processwas reminiscent of nerves before and during performance. This is anexample of how contingency can affect research findings.

Interview 4 Rachel and Tim

Rachel and Tim are a middle-class couple who are neighbours along mystreet. I have known them since they moved to this area several yearsago. Rachel works in the banking sector and Tim is a carpenter. They have3 boys under 10. I thought it would be interesting to see how a familywhose children are not yet using SNS viewed the phenomenon. Theinterview took place in their kitchen one evening. Just to see how itpanned out I used the Flip camera to record audio only; Rachel did sayshe really wouldnt have minded being videoed but I told her it was aquestion of using different research methods and not for any otherreason.

Listening to their voices seemed to concentrate the mind on anyhesitations or inflection in their voices. There was a moment when theirson came down from the bedroom asking for water: listening to therecording subsequently, this was a significant and sweet moment as oneis reminded of the sheer authenticity of the material. We are used toseeing informal, unrehearsed and unedited video material on TV and theinternet but the aural media to which we are exposed, i.e. spoken radiooutput, is normally tightly and professionally edited and produced. Anysilences are acutely felt and one is forced to feel the limbo and fill it with

spontaneous meaning. The fact that I used a video camera for audio also

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felt quite odd as if I was defiantly rejecting its perceived superiorfunctionality.

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