Digital Parenting and Children’s Problematic Internet Use: Implications for Family Counseling and Education

The rapid expansion of digital technologies has significantly reshaped children’s daily lives, learning environments, and family dynamics. While digital media provide important educational and social opportunities, excessive and poorly regulated internet use among children has become a growing concern. This narrative review examines the relationship between digital parenting practices and children’s problematic internet use, focusing on implications for family counseling and educational contexts. A structured literature search was conducted across major databases, including PsycINFO, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar, covering peer-reviewed studies published between 2010 and 2025. The selected studies were analyzed thematically. The findings indicate that supportive and communicative digital parenting practices function as protective factors by enhancing children’s self-regulation and digital literacy. In contrast, permissive and inconsistent parenting approaches increase the risk of problematic internet use, while overly restrictive strategies without open communication may produce counterproductive outcomes. The study highlights the importance of balanced parental mediation and emphasizes the integration of digital parenting education into family counseling and school-based interventions.