Child Rearing in the Digital Age: Modern Strategies for Personality Building and Value Enhancement (http://doi.org/10.63386/620139)
Child Rearing in the Digital Age: Modern Strategies for Personality Building and Value Enhancement
| Shamma Khaled Talafha |
| College of Educational Sciences |
| Jadara University |
| Email: drshammatalafha@gmail.com |
Abstract:
The digital age is one of the most important factors influencing child rearing in the current era, as children have become increasingly and significantly exposed to technological influences. This has posed new challenges in the field of education, and this may impose new challenges on parents and educators in the educational process. The purpose of this study was to determine some modern educational strategies for building the personality of children and promoting human values in the digital age. The focus of this study was on the influence of technology on children and how to guide its use to serve personal development and promote values. The research addressed negative and positive effects of technology on children, and how to manage these influences in a way that would contribute to the development of personality and social and mental abilities, in addition to clarify the role of family and school in rearing children in the digital environment.
The researcher adopted a qualitative approach based on document review and discourse analysis. Such approach a qualitative methodology used to analyze scientific content in previous studies, educational documents, and written sources with the aim of extracting concepts, ideas, and recurring patterns related to the research topic. The researcher reviewed six Arabic and foreign documents related to the topic of concern and then analyzed them, clarifying the points of agreement and disagreement plus the most important results and recommendations manifested. Among the most important of these results was that the family is the first incubator of values, and directly influences guiding the child’s use of technology. The school bears the responsibility of integrating digital education into the curricula. Digital values that can be acquired by the child include safety, privacy, respect, discipline, and responsibility.
Based on the study results, the researcher provided some recommendations, the most important of which were enhancing educational awareness among parents and educators regarding the effects of technology on children. Moreover, adopting modern interactive models in education, such as education through stories, and learning through digital educational games with a value dimension.
Keywords: Digital age, Child Rearing, Strategies, and Values.
Introduction:
The digital age has become an integral part of children’s lives in the contemporary world, where information and communication technologies are increasing. The impact of this technology on child development is a double-edged sword. On one hand, digital devices offer great opportunities for developing children’s cognitive and educational skills. On the other hand, they may carry many risks that negatively affect children’s personal and behavioral values. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop educational strategies that keep pace with this technological progress and work to build the child’s personality and promote human values in a sound manner (Al-Shafi et al., 2024).
Values are defined as a set of principles and standards that guide the behavior of individuals and societies, and determine what is considered right or wrong, good or bad, desirable or undesirable. Values play a pivotal role in shaping personal and social identity, and are considered one of the basic pillars in building cohesive societies. Promoting values is a shared responsibility among the family, school, media, and religious institutions, which is done through good example, emotional education, and promoting critical thinking among the youth. Adopting educational and pedagogical methods that encourage discussion and dialogue also contributes effectively to consolidating positive values such as tolerance, respect, and teamwork in the hearts of individuals (Abdullah, 2024).
The impact of the digital age on child rearing:
Modern technology affects children in various ways—both positively and negatively. According to recent research, approximately 95% of teenagers in the United States own smartphones, indicating that the use of electronic devices has become a daily routine for many children.
On the positive side, technology can contribute to child rearing by supporting self-education, enhancing cognitive skills, and facilitating better communication with peers. However, the negative effects are also significant. These include screen addiction, reduced ability for social interaction, and difficulties in concentration and academic achievement.
Although technology can serve as a powerful educational tool, unregulated use may lead to the erosion of social values such as cooperation and participation. Studies have observed that children who spend extended periods in front of screens often experience challenges in social interaction, which can ultimately affect their personalities and emotional development. Therefore, it is essential to manage children’s exposure to technology carefully to ensure its influence remains constructive and supports healthy personality development.
Modern strategies for personality building in the digital age:
Building a child’s personality in the digital age requires integrating technology positively into the child’s daily life, while promoting human and social values. Based on the recommendations of experts in digital education, several strategies can be adopted to build personality and promote values in children in this age:
1. Using technology as an educational tool: Educational applications and programs that enhance critical thinking and creativity skills in children can be used, such as applications that help them learn programming or games that stimulate them to solve problems. This contributes to the development of children’s cognitive, skill, and behavioral abilities (Al-Jassim, 2021).
2. Adjusting device usage times: Studies indicate that good regulation of the time a child spends in front of digital devices enhances their life balance and gives them the opportunity for social interaction and other activities. Experts recommend that a child’s screen time should not exceed two hours a day, and avoid using them at bedtime.
3. Promoting values through digital games: Interactive digital games are effective means for building human values such as cooperation, tolerance, and equality. Promoting values in children through digital games is one of the modern and effective methods in education. In the digital age, digital games have become a powerful tool in shaping children’s personalities and developing their social and emotional skills. This is done by integrating human values into game content in a fun, interactive way, which contributes to building the child’s personality positively.
Promoting ethical and social values:
Many digital games integrate concepts such as cooperation, honesty, tolerance, and equality through tasks that require teamwork or ethical decision-making. For example, games that require players to help other characters or cooperate to solve common problems enhance team spirit and cooperation (Sumaya, 2023).
Education through play:
Digital games that contain educational elements are used as an effective tool for developing values. Such as games that simulate social life where children learn how to deal with situations such as violence, honesty, or cooperation in a virtual environment. Among the most famous games that contribute to promoting these values are: “SimCity” or “The Sims” games, where children learn how to make responsible decisions that affect the virtual world around them.
Teaching responsibility and planning:
Games that rely on time management or building things like “Minecraft” and “FarmVille” encourage children to take responsibility and make sound decisions. In these games, they learn how to manage resources wisely, which enhances their sense of responsibility.
Dealing with failure and success:
Through games that contain difficulty levels or tasks that require multiple attempts to succeed, children learn the value of patience and perseverance. These games help them understand that failure is not the end of the road, but an opportunity to learn and grow.
Promoting environmental and sustainable values:
There are games that focus on teaching children’s environmental values such as preserving nature and animals by simulating natural environments. For example, games like “Planet Coaster” and “Zoo Tycoon” encourage children to care for the environment and make decisions that consider sustainability and nature protection.
Simulating social situations and learning conflict resolution:
Some games like “Toca Boca” and “Poptropica” give children the opportunity to simulate real-life situations such as resolving conflicts or making sound decisions in social situations. These games help children learn how to deal with differences of opinion and solve problems peacefully.
Games that promote tolerance and coexistence:
There are many games that promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence among people of different races and cultures. An example of this is games like “Civilization” which encourage players to build empires that respect cultural diversity and work towards cooperation between nations (Al-Attar, 2022).
The role of family and school in promoting values and building character:
The role of family and school in raising children in the digital age is no less important than the role of technology itself. The family must set limits for technology use at home, and help children allocate specific time for digital activities. On the other hand, the school can play an important role in teaching children how to use technology responsibly, by introducing educational programs aimed at promoting human values such as justice and equality. The role of family and school in promoting values and building character for children in the current digital age, children are greatly affected by technology and digital media, which makes it necessary for family and school to play an effective role in promoting human values and shaping character. The following is a detailed explanation of the role of both family and school (Al-Ghufaili, 2024).
The family is the first environment in which the child interacts. At home, the child learns how to deal with emotions and how to communicate with others. The family can instill values such as respect, honesty, and cooperation in the child through daily interaction and providing a positive behavioral model. Since children in the digital age face multiple challenges due to the internet and social media, the family plays a pivotal role in teaching children how to use these tools safely and effectively. The family can set specific times for device use, and introduce children to internet ethics, including respecting the privacy of others and avoiding digital violence and bullying, and encouraging reading and learning: With the abundance of information available online, the family needs to encourage their children to choose useful and purposeful content, and help children develop critical thinking skills (Al-Zahrani, 2020).
The role of school in promoting values and building character:
Academic education: School is where children learn academic skills and acquire diverse knowledge. But more than that, school is a field for promoting human values such as mutual respect, enhancing understanding between different cultures, and encouraging critical and analytical thinking.
Digital awareness: With the spread of the internet, schools are committed to teaching children how to deal with technology responsibly. This includes understanding the risks associated with the digital world, such as cyberbullying, digital addiction, and loss of privacy, and how to avoid them.
Psychological and social guidance: Schools also play an important role in supporting children’s mental health and guiding them on how to face social pressures they may encounter in a world full of diverse information, in addition to the role of teachers in guiding children towards positive behaviors. The school also has an important and prominent role for school leadership in strengthening digital partnership with the family to ensure the child’s digital security and suggested activating joint awareness programs that include parents (Al-Dossary, 2025).
Challenges in the digital age:
Excessive reliance on technology: Excessive use of digital devices can lead to social isolation, deterioration of personal relationships, and internet addiction. This makes it necessary for family and school to work together to guide children towards moderate and balanced use of technology, inappropriate digital content: The internet exposes children to content that may be inappropriate or harmful, such as violence, hatred, and pornography. Families and schools must work together to purify content directed at children and guide them toward safe educational and entertainment websites.
Challenges facing educators:
Educators face significant challenges in raising children in the digital age, such as the inability to fully control the content children are exposed to online. Educators also need to adapt to new teaching methods that involve integrating technology into daily activities. Furthermore, educators need continuous training to adapt to these modern technological changes. In the digital age, educators and teachers face multiple challenges that hinder child-rearing and the promotion of values. Among the most prominent of these challenges is the disparity in access to technology among students, especially in rural schools or those with limited resources, which makes it difficult to implement effective digital educational strategies (Mohamed, 2024).
Secondly, the lack of technical skills among teachers and their limited digital leadership makes them unable to interact positively with digital tools, especially in the Arab context, without continuous and specialized professional training support. Thirdly, cultural and professional change among teachers and institutions: Some resist integrating technology for fear of losing their role, while the school system lags behind in updating the incentives and regulatory framework required. The risk of inappropriate content and digital addiction in children highlights the need for a greater role for the family in guidance and supervision, along with educational awareness within the school (Al-Shaboul et al., 2024).
Previous studies:
A study by Lena Jaggi et al. (2025 aimed to explore the effectiveness of digital educational interventions targeting parents in low- and middle-income countries, and their impact on early childhood development (from birth to 5 years of age). The researchers used a Scoping Review methodology and analyzed 1399 initial studies, ultimately selecting only 13 studies that met the strict scientific criteria. The results showed that some digital interventions helped parents improve their parenting behaviors and supported their mental health, but their impact on children was varied and unclear in most studies that used direct measurement tools for child development. The researchers recommended the need to enhance the design of digital educational programs in the future, expand the scope of high-quality experimental studies, and emphasize the importance of targeting vulnerable families and improving their access to these interventions through appropriate technological media.
In a recent study conducted in 2025, a research team from the University of Wollongong, Australia, led an analytical study titled “Techno Ference and Early Childhood Development: A Systematic Review”. The study aimed to examine the phenomenon of “techno Ference,” which refers to the interference of parents’ use of digital devices during interaction with their children, and its impact on the early development of children under the age of five. The study adopted a Systematic Review methodology and was based on the analysis of data from 21 studies involving more than 14,900 children. The results revealed that excessive use of smart devices by parents during family time led to a decline in social skills, language delay, and weak emotional attachment between parents and children, in addition to an increase in negative behaviors in children such as tantrums and introversion. The team recommended the need to regulate parents’ use of technology during interaction with children, and to enhance opportunities for verbal communication and direct play, emphasizing that the emotional relationship between the child and their parents is negatively affected by the absence of full attention, which reflects on the child’s mental and behavioral health in the long term.
Al-Ma’nawi (2023) conducted a study titled: Socialization methods in raising children of the New Republic in light of the challenges of the era. This study aimed to reveal the most important socialization methods used by the family in the digital age and their effects on children. To reveal the most important socialization methods used by the family in the digital age and their effects on children, the resulting problems and effects were analyzed, and the descriptive analytical method was used. The study results revealed that among the most important findings was the existence of negative methods such as authoritarianism, overprotection, discrimination, cruelty, pampering, and neglect. These methods affected moral, health, educational, psychological, and social aspects. In light of these results, the researcher presented a set of recommendations, the most important of which was: adopting positive methods including: education, awareness, educational guidance, and proper control of technology use
The Study Purpose:
The purpose of this study is to determine the influence of modern educational strategies used in the digital age on child personality development and the enhancement of their educational and social values. By analyzing the complementary roles of the family and educational institutions, and revealing the effectiveness of digital media and interactive technologies in supporting socialization processes. Identifying challenges and obstacles that educators may encounter in this context, and proposing integrated mechanisms for utilizing the digital environment to promote values in children.
Study Problem:
Recent years have witnessed rapid development in digital media and interactive technology, leading to a fundamental change in the social and educational environment in which children grow up. In light of this rapid digital transformation, the researcher observed, through her field experiences and academic knowledge, a growing gap between traditional educational capabilities relied upon by families and schools, and the nature of contemporary digital challenges that directly affect the formation of a child’s personality and social values. It became clear to the researcher that there is a deficiency in the ability of many educators and teachers to keep pace with digital transformations, whether in terms of value guidance or controlling a child’s digital behavior, at a time when children are exposed daily and repeatedly to diverse digital content that may conflict with targeted educational values and create in them a state of value alienation and weak belonging and behavioral balance.
Study Questions:
Based on what was mentioned in the study problem, the study questions are as follows:
– How can modern educational strategies be developed to contribute to child personality development and value enhancement in light of the challenges of the digital age.
– What is the nature of the existing gap between traditional educational capabilities and the requirements of current digital education?
Study Significance:
The importance of this study stems from the nature of the transitional phase the world is witnessing in light of rapid digital development, which has cast its shadow on all aspects of upbringing and education, especially concerning child personality development
and the enhancement of their value system. At the theoretical level, this study contributes to enriching contemporary educational literature by shedding light on the relationship between digital education and personality development, and providing an analytical vision of the latest strategies that can be employed in raising children in an environment saturated with technology and information.
It also provides a conceptual framework that helps in understanding the nature of value challenges imposed by the digital age on children and society. At the practical level, the importance of the study lies in its ability to provide families, teachers, and educational policymakers with a set of effective and realistic strategies that can be applied to ensure a balance between the uses of digital media on the one hand, and instilling moral and educational values on the other. The study also provides practical solutions to face digital challenges that hinder traditional upbringing methods, which enhances the effectiveness of educational roles in school and home alike.
Study Methodology:
This study adopted the document review and analysis method, which is one of the qualitative methodologies used to analyze scientific content in previous studies, educational documents, and written sources with the aim of extracting concepts, ideas, and recurring patterns related to the research topic. This method relies on systematically analyzing texts to reveal trends, gaps, and explanatory relationships between concepts related to the studied phenomenon. The document review and analysis method were chosen for several reasons, including the breadth and complexity of the topic in Arabic and foreign literature, which requires an analytical approach to reveal similarities and differences in addressing the topic.
The suitability of the method to the nature of the research which aims to review and analyze various educational strategies and theoretical frameworks on child upbringing in the digital environment, and the accessibility of a large amount of electronically published data, which allows for the formation of a comprehensive understanding of the topic without the need for direct field tools. The researcher collected and analyzed a number of peer-reviewed studies and research published in recent years (2018–2025) in Arabic and English, and their sources varied between databases such as Dar Al Mandumah, Marefa, and Shamela.and foreign scientific journals that relied on databases such as: ERIC and Google Scholar. Specific criteria were adopted in selecting studies, such as recency of publication, relevance of the study to the research topic, and its inclusion of clear educational and value dimensions.
Study Results:
Documents and studies were analyzed using the thematic analysis method and documents were classified according to main axes clarifying the role of the family and the role of the school and the most important digital values that should be acquired during child rearing. Through
the results and their interpretation in light of the study’s objectives, linking them to the Arab educational reality.
This table presents a qualitative analysis of documents related to child rearing in the digital age. The data is organized around three main thematic axes: the role of the family, the role of the school, and digital values. The table includes extracted content from documents, supporting quotations or examples, and the researcher’s interpretation.
| Axis | Extracted Content from Documents | Supporting Examples or Quotations | Researcher’s Interpretation |
| Role of the Family | Parental control alone is not enough. Guidance, dialogue, and trust-building are essential to promote ethical technology use. | UNICEF (2022): “Parents must be active partners in their children’s internet use and guide them towards safe and valuable content.” | The family is the primary incubator of a child’s values and plays a direct role in guiding their use of technology. |
| Role of the Family | There is a need to enhance digital awareness among parents first, as values cannot be taught unless the parent models them behaviorally. | Alqahtani (2021): “Parental digital behavior directly influences how children interact with technology.” | Digital role modeling within the family is crucial; children learn ethical digital behavior by observing their parents. |
| Role of the School | Integrating digital values into the school curriculum builds ethical awareness, especially in early and middle childhood stages. | Finnish Education Plan (2020): “Digital values are embedded in all subjects through everyday digital life scenarios.” | Schools are responsible for embedding digital citizenship within the academic content across all levels. |
| Role of the School | Teachers must be trained in digital pedagogy, not just technical skills, as they are the first line of defense against online value decline. | Hollandsworth et al. (2020): “Teachers are not just knowledge transmitters; they shape safe digital environments that reinforce values.” | Teachers play a key role in modeling positive digital behavior and fostering value-based discussions in classrooms. |
| Digital Values | Digital values are not separate from general human values but are an extension of them in the online world. They should be practiced daily, not just promoted in slogans. | ISTE (2021): “Digital citizenship is built on respect, responsibility, and positive participation.” | Digital values encompass safety, privacy, respect, discipline, and responsibility and should be embedded in daily digital interactions. |
Researcher’s Interpretation Supporting Examples and Quotations Content Extracted from Documents Axis.
Documents indicate that parental control alone is not enough; rather, it is necessary to combine guidance, dialogue, and building trust with the child to promote ethical technology use. UNICEF document (2022): “Parents must be active partners in their children’s internet use and guide them towards safe and valuable content.” The family is the first incubator of a child’s values and directly influences their technology use.
Role of the Family
This reflects the need to enhance parents’ digital awareness first, as values cannot be taught unless the parent themselves adheres to them behaviorally. Study (Alqahtani, 2021): “Parents’ digital behavior forms a direct model that children are influenced by in their interaction with technology.” The importance of digital role models within the family, as children learn from their parents’ digital behavior. Role of the Family
Integrating digital values into educational materials promotes the building of comprehensive ethical awareness, especially in early and middle childhood stages. Finnish Education Plan (2020): “Digital values are part of all subjects, through daily digital life scenarios.” The school bears the responsibility of integrating digital education into curricula. Role of the School
Teachers must be trained in digital education skills, not just technical skills, because they are the first line of defense against value erosion online. Study (Hollandsworth et al., 2020): “Teachers are not just knowledge transmitters, but creators of a safe digital environment that promotes values.” The role of teachers in providing positive digital models and promoting value discussions in the classroom. Role of the School
These documents confirm that digital values are not isolated from general values, but rather an extension of them in the online space, and should be taught as daily practices, not abstract slogans. ISTE document (2021): “Digital citizenship is built on values of respect, responsibility, and positive participation.” Digital values include safety, privacy, respect, discipline, responsibility, Digital Values.
Conclusion and Recommendations:
In the midst of the rapid transformations imposed by the digital age, it has become necessary to reconsider traditional educational methods to keep pace with the new challenges children face. The results of this research have shown that digital technology, despite the educational and communication opportunities it provides, can directly and indirectly affect the building of a child’s personality, values, and behaviors. Therefore, conscious dealing with these facts requires adopting modern educational strategies that enhance the child’s moral and psychological immunity, and contribute to building a balanced personality capable of positive interaction with the digital environment without losing its identity or detaching from its value system.
Recommendations:
1-Enhance educational awareness among parents and educators about the effects of technology on children, and provide training courses concerned with conscious and safe use of digital media
2-Integrate digital education into curricula through educational activities that focus on values, digital identity, media literacy, and distinguishing between positive and negative digital behavior.
3-Adopt modern interactive models in education, such as education through stories, and learning through digital educational games with a value dimension.
4-Provide a supportive family environment based on dialogue, understanding, and containment, which helps the child express themselves and face digital pressures with confidence and awareness.
5-Cooperation between educational and media institutions to provide positive and targeted digital content for children, supporting personality building and instilling human values.
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