Navigating fairness and boundaries: parental rule strategies and indicators of adolescents’ media overuse

Balancing adolescents’ growing desire for independence with the establishment of effective media-related rules presents a complex challenge for many parents. Our study, utilising a diverse nationwide sample of 1,480 adolescents aged 13-17, investigates how adolescents’ perceptions of rule restrictiveness might explain the relationship between parental rule strategies and adolescents’ overuse of media. Indicators of overuse include dysregulated media engagement, interference of media use with other activities, and media-related physical symptoms. Structural equation modelling reveals that a higher number of rules and more frequent enforcement are associated with increased perceptions of restrictiveness among adolescents. However, adolescents tend to view rules as more reasonable when parents consistently adhere to these rules themselves, particularly in situations with numerous rules and strict enforcement. Notably, a curvilinear relationship emerges between adolescents’ perceptions of rule restrictiveness and media overuse indicators. Adolescents who perceive rules as reasonable, rather than overly restrictive or lenient, report lower levels of media overuse indicators. Our findings highlight the importance of parents establishing media use expectations that are balanced, reasonable, and that they themselves are committed to following.