Vicki Shotbolt is the co-chair of the UKCISS Digital Resilience Working Group. She conducts research on digital resilience and provides support to parents and professionals on developing resilience in children online. Developing resilience involves engaging children with appropriate online opportunities rather than avoidance or restriction. Supportive and authoritative parenting that does not overly monitor or restrict internet use helps develop resilience. Effective support and information for parents should empower them to feel confident, capable and motivated to adopt authoritative parenting styles when it comes to their child's internet use.

1. Educating Parents
Theory & Practice

2. Vicki Shotbolt
Co-Chair of UKCISS Digital Resilience Working Group
Supporting families and the
professionals that work with
them….
Provide support directly to parents and professionals
Deliver a range of school initiatives
Chair the UKCCIS Digital Resilience working group
Conduct research with and about families

3. Starting
with the
theory

4. Resilience
What is it?
A dynamic personality asset that grows
from digital activation i.e. through engaging
with appropriate opportunities and
challenges online, rather than through
avoidance and safety behaviours.

5. Is it important?
“we failed to find convincing evidence that Internet
filters were effective at shielding early adolescents
from aversive experiences online. Instead, we found
convincing evidence they were not effective in our
sample. “
Oxford Internet Institute
Dr Andy Przybylski
iDr Victoria Nash
“children who were resilient and able to self
regulate were more likely to seek out positive
opportunities online and less likely to experience
harm. “
Oxford Internet Institute &
Parent Zone

6. How do you develop it?
“Supportive and enabling parenting has a more
positive impact on resilience than parental
strategies that restrict or monitor internet use”

7. It is hard to learn new things
AuthoritativeAuthoritarian UninvolvedPermissive
Parenting Styles
Authoritarian Authoritative Permissive Uninvolved

8. Confident
Well Informed
Properly resourced
Capable
Motivated
What do parents need to be in
order to be Authoritative?

9. The family unit is a private space

10. Parents worry

11. The task is enormous

12. Digital parenting is difficult

13. Practice

14. Motivation to change behaviour
Positive Negative
Driven by moral,
ethical and social
concerns
Driven by
shame and guilt
FEARDESIRE
REWARD THREAT
“stick”“carrot”
Intrinsic
Extrinsic

17. Parenting Support
Information that supports
authoritative parenting
What should you deliver?

18. Well informed
 Information included in regular
communications e.g. end of term mailings,
welcome packs, house newsletters etc
 Parent Info
 Face to face sessions delivered by trusted
providers or using high quality materials
Confident
 Given support to encourage their child’s
positive use of technology
 Provided with examples of their child’s
positive use of technology
 Not needlessly frightened in face to face
sessions or any other information
Capable & Motivated
 Consider more structured digital parenting
support e.g. Parent Zone parenting course
 Think about parenting motivations –
university places, careers etc.

20. vicki@parentzone.org.uk
@Vshotbolt
@Theparentszone
www.parentzone.org.uk
www.parentinfo.org