"The kids hate it, but we love it!": parents' reviews of circle

Abstract

The contribution aims to present a critical analysis of Circle -a screen time management and parental control device- through the lens of parental mediation, children’s surveillance, and children’s rights to online participation. Circle promis-es to sell parents peace of mind by allowing them to monitor their children’s online activities. In order to investigatehow parents themselves understand Circle, we conducted a quantitative and qualitative content analysis of a sample of154 parental reviews about the device on Amazon and Searchman by parents of children from early childhood to ado-lescence, with respect to perceived advantages and disadvantages of the device, parenting styles, and (the absence of)children’s voice and agency. Results suggest an ambivalent relationship between parents and the device. Most reviewsadhere to the dominant discourses on ‘screen time", framing children's "intimate surveillance" as a good parenting prac-tice, and emphasize the need for the "responsible parents" to manage their children's online experiences with the aid of Circle. Others, int turn, criticize the device for failing to enable fine grained monitoring, while few reported the device could dismiss children's voice and cause conflicts in the households. Overall, findings suggest that parental control devices maypromote restrictive mediation styles hindering children’s voice and their exploratory and participatory agency online.