Social Media and Its Impact on Family Relationships of Children – A Field Study on a Sample of Families in the City of Tripoli

Abstract

This study examines the impact of social media use on the nature of family relationships among children in the city of Tripoli. It also investigates whether there are statistically significant differences in this impact according to gender. The study adopted a descriptive analytical approach and relied on a purposive sample of 120 participants, comprising 42 fathers and 78 mothers. The findings indicate that social media has had a clear impact on the family value system in Tripoli. This impact is reflected in the weakening of parental authority and the emergence of intellectual alienation among children. Although the overall level of impact was equal among males and females, with a mean score of 2.35, the way this impact appeared differed by gender. Among males, it was more behavioural and confrontational, appearing through resistance to family decisions and challenges to parental authority. Among females, the impact was more social and value-oriented, appearing through virtual isolation and increased concern with material appearances, fashion, and lifestyle images promoted online. The study concludes that the growing presence of social media has contributed to the decline of shared family dialogue and has weakened the family’s traditional role in socialisation. As a result, the relationship between parents and children has gradually shifted towards a more peer-like pattern, marked by emotional distance and reduced parental influence.