Why ‘Sharenting’? Is it Related to Parents’ or Children’s Psychiatric Symptoms?

Abstract

Objectives: We investigated the relationships between the “sharenting” phenomenon and psychiatric symptoms of parents and children. Materials and Methods: Parental social media practices and details of their sharenting behavior were evaluated using an anonymous questionnaire. The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) were used to evaluate the psychiatric symptoms of parents and children, respectively. Results: One hundred and ninety-six parents completed the survey. Neither sharenting status nor sharenting frequency was found to be associated with BSI scores. However, among sharenting motivations, “make one’s presence felt” and “acceptance-seeking” were related to BSI scores. Regarding children’s psychological symptoms, “sharing a child’s ability” was associated with emotional symptoms scores of SDQ. Besides, a border-level-association of sharenting status with children’s prosocial behaviors was detected. Conclusion: The current study is the first study investigating associations of the psychiatric symptoms with the sharenting phenomenon and its motivations. Rather than the action of sharenting, certain motivations behind it were found to be associated with parents’ and children’s psychiatric symptoms.