Utility of Parental Mediation Model on Youth’s Problematic Online Gaming

The Parental Mediation Model PMM) was initially designed to regulate children’s attitudes towards the traditional media. In the present era, because of prevalent online media there is a need for similar regulative measures. Spending long hours on social media and playing online games increase the risks of exposure to the negative outcomes of online gaming. This paper initially applied the PMM developed by European Kids Online to (i) test the reliability and validity of this model and (ii) identify the effectiveness of this model in controlling problematic online gaming (POG). The data were collected from 592 participants comprising 296 parents and 296 students of four foreign universities, aged 16 to 22 years in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). The study found that the modified model of the five-factor PMM (Technical mediation, Monitoring mediation, Restrictive mediation, Active Mediation of Internet Safety, and Active mediation of Internet Use) functions as a predictor for mitigating POG. The findings suggest the existence of a positive relation between ‘monitoring’ and ‘restrictive’ mediation strategies and exposure to POG while Active Mediation of Internet Safety and Active mediation of Internet use were insignificant predictors. Results showed a higher utility of ‘technical’ strategies by the parents led to less POG. The findings of this study do not support the literature suggesting active mediation is more effective for reducing youth’s risky behaviour. Instead, parents need to apply more technical mediations with their children and adolescents’ Internet use to minimize the negative effects of online gaming

A model of online protection to reduce children's online risk exposure: empirical evidence from Asia

Children are surrounded by a variety of digital media and are exposed to potential risks that come with such easy accessibility. Learning how to be safe online is an important consideration for both children and their caregivers. The present study proposes an integrated model of online safety based on constructs from protection motivation theory and the health belief model, namely perceived severity of (and susceptibility to) risk, online self-efficacy, online privacy concern, and digital literacy. The study comprised a survey conducted among 420 schoolchildren aged 9–16 years. Using partial least squares-structural equation modelling, the results illustrated the presence of a negative effect of ‘perceived severity of online risk’ toward online risks, whereas the effect of ‘digital literacy’ was found to be positive. Children whose perception of online risks was more severe were less exposed to online risks if they had higher ‘online privacy concerns’ than the children with higher ‘digital literacy’ who are more exposed to online risk. Results of the study show that engaging in safe online behaviour requires children to have a high perception regarding severity of online risks as well as knowledge of online privacy concerns. Online risks and opportunities occur in parallel. Consequently, the factors that increase or decrease risk may also increase or decrease the benefits

An integrated model to reduce online risks for children

As Malaysian children continue to spend a lot of time online, they are exposed to unknown undesirable experiences. Testing an integrated model of online protection behaviour using three theoretical approaches, namely the parental mediation model (Livingstone, Haddon & Görzig, 2012); protection motivation theory (Rogers, 1975); and the health belief model (Janz & Becker, 1984; Glanz & Rimer, 2005), this study aims to suggest a way to reduce online risks for children. Online risk to children is measured using a 39-item scale adapted from two national studies in Europe (EU Kids Online; 2006–9) and the US [(Youth Internet Safety Survey-1 (YISS-1), 2000; YISS-2, 2005; YISS-3, 2010)]. A quantitative survey was conducted among 420 school children and one of their respective parents/guardians; structural equation modeling-partial least squares (SEMPLS) was applied using SmartPLS (Version 3.2.1) to test the proposed model. The results of this study suggest that children with higher perception of the severity of risks, higher self-efficacy, and who are mediated to a higher degree by their parents, are less exposed to the risks they are encounter online, and that children with higher digital literacy are also more exposed to those risks. Directindirect mediation analyses reveal that those children with a higher perception of the severity of online risks are less at risk if they have higher digital literacy and practice more privacy protection. This study found that the risks categorized in European countries and the US are less common in Malaysia. As predicted, parental mediation strategies were a significant factor in reducing online risks for children as well as children’s Internet self- efficacy. Parents are therefore advised to become more engaged with their children’s Internet use since this study found that the parental mediation reduces the online risk for children. Children need to be advised to improve their Internet self-efficacy and how best to cope with risky situations online. They must be conscious of the possible risks to them and learn how to be safe while using Internet. Hence, as this study suggested if a child’s online protection behaviour occurs in conjunction with parental mediation, children in the Malaysian context would encounter fewer online risks. The results offer a model of Internet risk protection that could not only be practiced by Malaysian families, but also be applied by society, policymakers, and practitioners. There are a number of limitations to this study, such as a lack of definition of online risks and topic sensitivity, both in the Malaysian context. Overall, the modified model proposed in this study was confirmed. However,further investigation is required in order to classify online risks to children and offer more solutions to reducing the online risks faced by Malaysian children

Relationship between workplace friendship and organizational commitment

The main objective of this study is to determine the nature of relationship between workplace friendship and organizational commitment in two Iranian organizations. Data collected via a questionnaire survey of 302 employees from an Iranian delivery service company and a milk products company. Workplace friendship and multi-dimensional of organizational commitment scales, created by Neilson (2000) and Mayer & Allen (1997) was used to ask respondents about their perception of workplace friendship and organizational commitment.Data obtained were analyzed using the SPSS software version 16. The relationship between two dimensions of workplace friendship, which is including of Friendship Prevalence and Friendship Opportunity, and three components of organizational commitment (Affective, Continuance, and Normative Commitment) were examined using the Spearman Rho correlation.The findings indicate that the level of Organizational Commitment and Workplace Friendship are rather high among the administrative staff of the two companies. The study shows that Friendship Opportunity is positively related to Normative Commitment.Continuance Commitment and Friendship Prevalence are found to be significantly related to Affective Commitment, Normative Commitment, and Continuance Commitment. The result demonstrated that the relationship between friendship dimensions and Normative Commitment is higher than the Continuance Commitment and Affective Commitment. However, there is no significant relationship between Friendship Opportunity and Affective Commitment. The overall pattern in the relationship suggested that workplace friendship has a significant influence on organization commitment among the respondents. The findings of this study implicate that managers in Iranian companies need to pay serious attention and effort to create a friendly environment that encourages commitment among the employees in their organizations. It is obvious from this study that the opportunity to form friendships may have resulted in positive work attitude in organizational commitment. This study concludes that workplace friendship is becoming a more significant issue in the organizational environment since it relates very closely to how individuals operate in teams and organizations as a whole. As such, the need for further and more direct research is vital to understand the effect of workplace friendship as a phenomenon

What is upsetting our children online?

The Internet offers children opportunities as well as risks. However, the risks children are exposed to are still unknown. A total number of 420 Malaysian children aged 9-16 were asked to fill a 54-items questionnaire measuring Child Online Risks. The result shows that children are more exposed to ‘Unwanted Exposure to pornography’ such as seeing obscene materials on websites (31%), and ‘Potential harmful risks’ such as seeing bloody movies or photos (26%), people being beaten up (26%), and hate messages (16 %). Malaysian children are in danger to encounter with online risks such as pornography and violence materials