Abstract

ALMEIDA, Ana Nunes de; ALVES, Nuno de Almeida  and  DELICADO, Ana. Children and the internet in Portugal: usage profiles. Sociologia, Problemas e Práticas [online]. 2011, n.65, pp.9-30. ISSN 0873-6529.

On the basis of a questionnaire survey carried out among Portuguese children, this article aims to characterise their possession and usage of the internet. The survey ascertained that the children can be grouped under four distinct user profiles - “confirmed cybernauts”, “applied students”, “inveterate gamers” and “beginners” - and demonstrates that these profiles are highly conditioned by variables such as a child’s sex and age and his or her parents’ educational levels and socio-professional categories. These profiles also correspond to different forms of parental mediation and different representations regarding the internet.

Keywords : children; internet; usage profiles; digital divide.

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