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What Is a ‘Digital Family’?

  • Sakari TaipaleEmail author
Chapter
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Abstract

This chapter introduces the concept of the digital family. Digital families are one form of distributed extended families, consisting of related individuals living in one or more households who utilize at least basic level information and communication technologies and social media applications to stay connected and maintain a sense of unity. The strengths and limitations of the notion are discussed, assessing its usefulness vis-à-vis neighbouring concepts. The chapter ends with the discussion of the perception of family in the three countries studied, Finland, Italy and Slovenia, and of the differences found between them.

Keywords

Digital family Distributed family Extended family Information and communication technology Network family Social media 
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© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.University of JyväskyläJyväskyläFinland

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