Parenting in Digital Age: Let’s Bring Back the Culture
Ria Novianti
1
, Mahdum
2
, Suarman
3
and Elmustian
3
1
Department of Early Childhood Education, Riau University, Indonesia
2
Department of Doctoral of Education, Riau University, Indonesia
3
Riau University, Indonesia
Keywords: Parenting, Digital, Culture.
Abstract: Technology advances offer convenience in our life nowadays. However, it also presents many challenges in
families due to the excessive use of digital devices by parents and children. In this study, we will examine the
way Riau Malay culture, also known as Tunjuk Ajar Melayu or Malay teachings, can be used as a guide for
parenting in the digital age. The inability of parents to apply good parenting leads to problems in teaching
children attitude and manner. The method used is the literature review from Riau Malay manuscripts. The
result shows that Tunjuk Ajar Melayu contains noble values related to education and childcare. It can be used
as guidelines for parents in educating children, including responsibility and role as parents, cooperation in
educating children, and the ability to face problems that are the basis for parenting. It can be recommended
that parents return to make Riau Malay cultural values as a guide in parenting in the digital era.
1 INTRODUCTION
It is not easy to be parents in the digital age. The
impact of technological advances, such as educating
children, on how everyone thinks and acts
necessitates the confronting of many new challenges
(Haslam, et. all, 2017). After all, using digital devices
in children provides convenience and opportunities
for learning and causes problems (Y. Alghamdi,
2017).
The use of digital media by young children is one
of the most prominent educational topics today.
Numerous studies have been conducted on the use of
digital media in children and training for parents to
assist them in better understanding how to use it with
children. According to the study, children aged four
to thirteen in South East Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia,
the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand) spent most
of their time using digital media at home, much less
frequently or never at school, and infrequently in
restaurants, at their friends' houses, or when taking a
car, bus, or train (Asianparent, 2014). Due to the
unique features of these devices and the quick
development of mobile applications aimed at these
age groups, the usage of tablets among young
children is expanding quickly (R. Hosokawa and T.
Katsura, 2018). Tablets, which have a built-in touch-
based interface, are acceptable for youngsters
between the ages of two and four, unlike older
technology devices like computers that require fine
motor skills to use correctly (Y. Alghamdi, 2017) &
(J. Marsh et al, 2015).
The positive impact of digital media on children
and teenagers' physical, cognitive, and social well-
being is expected to be mitigated by parental
mediation. Parental mediation is a multifaceted idea
that helps children develop and improve crucial
digital skills (S. Sharma and C. Y. Lee, 2023).
Parental mediation is primarily located within the
media effects paradigm, which emphasizes social,
psychological, and developmental aspects and is
primarily grounded in communication. In light of
digital media, there are five elements of parental
mediation that can be used to control online behavior.
Actively provide understanding to children, restrict
access to content, and co-use mediation for access and
supervision.
Parenting styles are significantly influenced by
cultural background. Different cultures have different
ideas and behaviors regarding parenting methods, like
discipline, education, family roles, and other
parenting-related topics. Parenting entails accepting
and transferring these cultural values and customs to
the following generation (R. Novianti, 2019), (S.
Tambak, 2020) & (M. A. Suizzo, 2019).
Novianti, R., Mahdum, ., Suarman, . and Elmustian, .
Parenting in Digital Age: Let’s Bring Back the Culture.
DOI: 10.5220/0012733800003798
Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
In Proceedings of the 2nd Maritime, Economics and Business International Conference (MEBIC 2023) - Sustainable Recovery: Green Economy Based Action, pages 211-215
ISBN: 978-989-758-704-7
Proceedings Copyright © 2024 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda.
211

The Government of Indonesia strongly backs
cultural preservation efforts as per Regulation 87 of
2021 regarding the Implementation Regulations of
Law Number 5 of 2017. The aim of one is Cultural
Advancement, which is to enhance the resilience and
contribution of Indonesian culture in the context of
world civilization. The law explains that promoting
culture involves protection, development, utilization,
guidance, and appreciation. According to Tambak et
al. (2020), in the Riau Malay tradition, Tunjuk Ajar
Melayu (TAM), also known as Malay teaching, is
understood as counsel, direction, and an example of
how to live a good life and follow the right path to
receive blessings from the Almighty God. All 28
themes in TAM can be used as a parenting manual (S.
Tambak, 2020).
The literature and research that examines
parenting in the digital age and its connection to local
culture is still limited. Therefore, this study intends to
examine and discuss how the noble values of Riau
Malay culture can be used as guidelines in parenting
in the digital era.
2 LITERATURE REVIEW
Parenting in the digital age comes with unique
difficulties that previous generations were spared.
The rapid development of technology and its
integration into our daily lives has had a profound
impact on the development, learning, and interactions
of children (C. P. Jeffery, 2021). It also requires a
good understanding of technology, open
communication with children, and proper planning
and discipline (R. Novianti, M. Muryanti, M. A.
Rusandi, and E. Noviana, 2023). Strengthening their
proactive attitudes and engaging in active self-
expression in daily life (Y. Alghamdi, 2017), (R.
Novianti, Hukmi, and I. Maria, 2019) can allow
children to help solve problems and create a safe and
secure environment in the digital age.
Parental mediation is the term used to describe the
methods parents employ to manage, discuss, and keep
an eye on their children's media consumption (S.
Livingstone and E. J. Helsper, 2008). Parental
mediation is designed to teach children how to use
media responsibly in order to provide learning
opportunities and reduce potential risks associated
with media use. Parental views, values, and
experiences serve as the foundation for parents’
parenting mediation tactics. The parent-child
interaction involves daily negotiations that take into
account both individual and environmental
considerations. However, they are not always applied
rigidly to every circumstance (K. Symons, K. Ponnet,
M. Walrave, and W. Heirman, 2017).
Parenting is inseparable from culture; even in
practice, parenting is carried out based on parental
culture (M. H. Bornstein, 2020). In Riau Malay
culture, it is known as Tunjuk Ajar Melayu or Malay
teaching, which define as all kinds of advice,
guidance, rules, and examples that are beneficial for
human life (T. Effendi, 2004). Malay teaching was
developed to guide and nurture children in modern
times such as today, and to provide good guidance to
parents to help them become good people with
integral personalities (I. Bangsawan, R. Ridwan, and
Y. Oktarina, 2021).
3 RESULT AND DISCUSSION
Parents are the primary gatekeepers and socializing
agents for the younger generation's access to media
and digital gadgets. They ensure that their children
use media responsibly, both in terms of time and
content. Parents must prioritize media education as
children use digital media at a younger age (P. Nikken
and J. Jansz, 2014).
Culture mitigated the effects of active mediation
by decreasing the frequency of media-related risks
and the duration of media usage. The findings also
showed that Eastern countries used active mediation
more successfully than Western nations. An active
mediation strategy can have a normative impact,
which is a reasonable explanation. Children establish
their perceived subjective norms of media use as a
result of parents telling them what to do or not do (L.
Chen and J. Shi, 2019). Malay teaching values that
relate to the use of children's digital devices can assist
in parental mediation.
3.1 Actively Provide Understanding to
Children
In educating children, Malays realize that every child
need attention (interest) and accuracy (careful) in his
physical and spiritual growth and development.
Therefore, parents must focus on their children
wholeheartedly (T. Effendy, 2004). This is known as
“minat bersama cermat,” or interest and carefulness,
which is explained by the following expression:
Yang minat sepanjang hayat
Yang cermat sepanjang buat
Minatnya berjimat-jimat
Cermatnya bersifat-sifat
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To balance the potential and threats that media
present, parents are responsible for monitoring their
children's media use (S. Livingstone and E. J.
Helsper, 2008). When the father and mother are
together with children, parents can wholeheartedly
pay attention to children (E. I. de Bruin et al, 2014),
and that is when parents can provide an understanding
to children about the rules that apply in the family
regarding the use of gadgets (R. Novianti, 2019) &
(B. Zaman and C. L. Mifsud, 2017). The child's
behavior towards using digital devices will be more
positive if parents provide them with understanding
and consistently apply rules.
3.2 Restrictive
In Riau Malay Culture, there is an expression: “Keras
dalam Lunak,” or hard in softness, which means that
parents are obliged to teach discipline to children (T.
Effendi, 2004). Discipline is applied educationally by
the personality of Malays who are unwilling to
impose the will of the will contrary to the will of
others and are willing to compromise for good.
This attitude of not wanting to impose their will
also applies to Riau Malay parents in educating
children. Discipline should be applied by parents in a
non-authoritarian and harsh manner. However, they
must be done step by step with soft language so that
awareness arises from within the child, not forced to
be disciplined for fear of parents (I. Bangsawan, R.
Ridwan, and Y. Oktarina, 2021). Parental mediation
involves parents restricting their children's use of
gadgets. Both from screen time and content.
According to Davidov (2021), restrictions must be
implemented with proper discipline, conveyed
through good communication, and understood by
children according to their age.
Restrictive mediation, or rule-making, describes
parental efforts to establish guidelines limiting how
much time their kids can spend using media and the
types of information they can view (Lwin et al., 2008;
Valkenburg & Peter, 2013). For instance, limiting
online contacts may help prevent youngsters from
being exposed to contact and content concerns
(Livingstone et al., 2015), and parents who used to
filtering software for their children were less likely to
experience cyberbullying (J. N. Navarro and J. L.
Jasinski, 2012) & (R. Novianti et al, 2023). The way
parents restrict the use of digital media in Riau Malay
Culture will succeed if it is done by providing
understanding to children and avoiding violence.
3.3 Co-Use Mediation on Access
"Antuah bahtera, sama-sama melayar." This
expression in Riau Malay conveys that just like a ship
needs its crew to sail the ocean together, so does
accompanying children. Parents or caregivers are
likened to crew accompanying children like ships
crossing life (E. Waridah and R. Renggana, 2014).
The message is the importance of presence, support,
and guidance in the child's developmental journey.
Positive parenting can be practiced by parents by
giving guidance, praising good behavior, and
teaching coping skills. Parents consciously
investigate and understand their reactions to children
and how past experiences can influence their
approach to accompanying children (K. E. Darling,
et.all, 2019). Co-using, co-viewing, or co-surfing
refers to parents engaging in media with their children
without actively engaging in discussions (P. M.
Valkenburg, 2013). The use of co-use has been
proven to improve children's media learning (H.
Sasson and G. S. Mesch, 2019) and decrease the risks
of online content for children (H. J. Jiow, S. S. Lim,
and J. Lin, 2017). In Riau Malay teachings, parents
are required to communicate with their children to
convey rules, optimistic character values, and pass on
culture (N. Yohana and M. E. Putri, 2014). Similarly,
by using mediation, good communication becomes
essential, especially when done by the parents, so that
children can use digital media according to their
functions and needs.
3.4 Content
Parents should complement children's knowledge by
instilling noble values derived from religious
teachings, customs, traditions, and social norms that
live in society. Thus, children will have an identity
and identity by their culture (T. Effendi, 2004). This
is explained in the phrase:
“hati dipahat dengan iman
Dada dituang dengan Lembaga
Diisi lurus dengan benar
Dituang berani dengan setia
Ditegakkan tiang budinya
Dikokohkan tiang amalnya
Dikuatkan tiang amanahnya
Didirikan tiang malunya.
Instilling noble values in children will make them
individuals who believe, virtuous, brave, and loyal.
Parenting in Digital Age: Let’s Bring Back the Culture
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However, various content contained in digital media
is not all by the age and development of children so it
can inhibit the instillation of positive values in
children.
Inappropriate information and media content have
exposed children and teenagers to risks to their
physical and mental health (C.-M. Chao, 2020). The
rise of television and the Internet has led to the
exposure of children to various media concerns,
including unsuitable content and unwanted contact
(S. Livingstone, et. al, 2017). According to research,
parents impact their kids' adoption of new media
technology and improve their academic results after
watching educational programs (P. Nikken and S. J.
Opree, 2023).
3.5 Supervision
Parental authority is highly prized in Asia. Most
Asian children respect and follow their parents'
directions (W.-C. Chen, 2016). The Riau Malay
Culture emphasizes the importance of parents'
respect, and it is the responsibility of parents to
educate and supervise children to behave well and
avoid making wrong decisions.
"Jaga anak buah, jangan sampai keluar payah."
This phrase in Riau Malay highlights the importance
of supervising children well. This expression reminds
parents or caregivers to care for children
conscientiously so they do not get involved in
situations or actions that could cause difficulties or
problems (E. Waridah and R. Renggana, 2014). In
line with this, supervision in parental mediation is
essential to maintain that the rules applied can run as
expected and that children are disciplined using
digital media.
When parental mediation is implemented,
children feel respected and supported by their parents,
which strengthens their autonomy and encourages
moral internalization. Children follow parental
instructions and exhibit less antisocial conduct (P. M.
Valkenburg, 2013).
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