What Australian research offers the study of digital childhoods: A scoping review of digital media use by families with young children

This article examines current Australian research about digital media use by families with young children. Informed by a scoping review of 55 publications (2017–2022), we use select findings as departure points to consider how Australian media and communications research can meaningfully contribute to both local and international knowledge. We find that current Australian research largely mirrors international trends, particularly in its lack of attention to differing experiences of digital childhood and its emphasis on instrumental dimensions of parenting. However, we argue that features of the Australian context mean that researchers here have an opportunity to contribute much needed insights across several key areas. First, there is an opportunity to examine how Indigenous and migrant families navigate digital media, building on existing Australian traditions that highlight these communities’ media practices. Second, there is an opportunity to examine how digital exclusion shapes early childhood experiences, particularly given Australia's persistent challenges with digital inequality. Third, there is an opportunity to critically examine how Anglo-Celtic Australian parenting cultures inform normative understandings of children's digital media use. These directions would not only provide a fuller picture of Australian digital childhoods but would also address areas of significant need in international research. We argue that these directions would enable richer and more deeply contextualised understandings of the breadth of Australian digital childhood experiences, enabling better public debate about children's everyday digital media use.