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Sharenting and exploitation: a qualitative content analysis of public reactions to the Wren Eleanor situation

Faculty Advisor

Date

2022

Keywords

sharenting, children, social media, exploitation, Wren Eleanor, public reaction, content analysis

Abstract (summary)

This study analyzed responses to the viral sharenting case of Wren Eleanor to understand how people react to sharenting and related allegations of child exploitation. A sample of 50 comments was created by retrieving the first 25 comments displayed on two TikTok videos. The sample consisted of an equal number of positive reactions (i.e., those supportive of Wren’s mother and her sharenting) and negative reactions (i.e., those critical of Wren’s mother and her sharenting). The positive responses had five themes: Victim, Opposition, Encouragement, Emotional Attachment and Involvement, and Advice. The negative responses had four themes: Perpetrator, Exploitation, Fear, and Action. This study demonstrated that parasocial relationships and interactions potentially play a key role in how people react to sharenting and allegations of child exploitation.

Publication Information

Stratman, A. (2023). Sharenting and exploitation: A qualitative content analysis of public reactions to the Wren Eleanor situation. Canadian Journal of Family and Youth, 15(2), 170-178. https://doi.org/10.29173/cjfy29930

Notes

Item Type

Student Report

Language

Rights

Attribution (CC BY)