I claim Digital meta-work piles up for mothers, and at the same time the time they spend online is criticized – “Controversial,” says researcher

Media technology Doctor of Philosophy Suvi-Sadetta Kaarakainen, doctoral student:

“Today, we live in the midst of different digital platforms and the demands associated with them.

Before, there were paper travel notebooks in schools. Today’s parents have to use the electronic Wilma system, where it would be convenient to reply to messages in near real time. At the same time, the everyday life of the school is much more integrated into the daily life of the home.

Electronic registrations are also used in hobbies and healthcare. The use of such services is digital meta-work, ie hidden homework. If meta-work accumulates more often on the shoulders of mothers than on fathers, as has been estimated, so will digital meta-work.

Contradiction arises from the fact that at the same time there is concern that mothers are too much on the phone.

The concern is reflected in the public discourse of parenting professionals and experts, in mothers ’own comments on somes and discussion boards, for example, and in general, when people comment on mother-related news and media content.

The requirement of constant presence is also one of the requirements of parenthood.

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Mothers remain primarily responsible for the daily life of the family and the affairs of children.

The ideal of a continuous presence stems from a new kind of parenting discourse launched in the 1990s. The ideals of so-called intensive parenting, which emphasizes a significant presence, began to spread to Finland, for example, as a result of the US housewives’ culture.

Intensive parenting emphasizes the pace of childhood and the fact that the parent is constantly sensitive to the child’s needs. It is no longer enough to fulfill these ideals as before, that is, that the parent is present. Almost every moment should also be in a meaningful connection with the child.

Mom are still primarily responsible for the daily life of the family and the affairs of children, which can be deduced from, among other things, family leave and domestic work statistics.

This is partly due to the fact that mothers use soma, for example, to find peer support and, on the other hand, to present their family life much more often than fathers.

There has been equality in parenting over the last decade. However, the responsibility accumulated on the shoulders of mothers has a long history.

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What happens if maternity speech seems to be isolated from a society of which the digital world is a part?

As a researcher, I think this responsibility must and must be discharged somewhere. In other words, in relation to children, there is a partial responsibility behind the discussions and content about sex, for which peer support is sought. It is therefore contradictory that it is automatically resented from the outside.

With regard to children and some, there has also been a debate about whether children can be part of their parents’ some content. Against this background is the change in childhood and the fact that today children are perceived as their own individuals from an early age.

However, the most interesting question for the researcher is what happens if children have to be completely excluded from the some. Then children and maternity speech seem to be isolated from the society of which the digital world is a part. Where does that lead?

If you even get feedback from your family about excessive phone use, it’s definitely a good idea to think about it. But it is not worth taking unnecessary pressure from conflicting demands to be digitally present at all times and to be present only to the child. It’s better to rely on your own judgment. ”

The story was first published in HS Our Family 1/2022.