Digital Child members recently travelled to Oslo to participate in a three-day workshop that brought together researchers from two large-scale initiatives focusing on family life and digital platforms – the Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child and PlatFAMS (Platforming Families), a CHANSE-funded research project.

The workshop was co-organised by Deakin University Chief Investigator Professor Julian Sefton-Green and Partner Investigator Professor Ola Erstad from the University of Oslo, and aimed to share research relating to platform use and its meaning and understanding in the context of the family, bringing together international experts who are doing empirical work in this area. 

Alongside Professor Julian Sefton-Green, other Centre members in attendance were Chief Investigator Dr Luci Pangrazio, Research Fellow Dr Kate Mannell, and Centre Student Katrin Langton.

“As an Early Career Researcher, the workshop provided particularly valued opportunities to meet and build relationships with international scholars who I would otherwise be unlikely to meet,” says Dr Mannell. “It was especially beneficial to participate in exchanges with the PlatFAMS team about how to develop their project, as it’s rare to experience how large multi-national projects are built from the ground up.”

As part of the workshop, attendees were able to each lead a session about different approaches and issues of concern in relation to platforms and family life, and aimed to discuss set priorities around this emerging field of research.

“It was an excellent opportunity to receive feedback on my project’s findings,” says Dr Pangrazio, who presented on her Centre ‘Data in the Home’ project. “It’s also stimulated my thinking around the theory associated with this field, such as the need to update how parental mediation is theorized, as well as how to conceptualise the relationship between datafication and platformisation.”

The workshop also included a round table at the main city library in Oslo, and brought a range of government, industry, and non-profit stakeholders into the discussion, all who have an interest in digital technologies and family life. Discussions are also underway for a collaborative publication emerging from the workshop.

“Being invited to attend, participate in, and present at the workshop was an incredible opportunity for me as a doctoral student,” says Ms Langton. “Their input has helped me to move my thinking forward … I also gained valuable insights into how my work connects with emerging areas of interest in the field of media and communication, including platformisation.”