The digital interconnection, a network woven from the transgenerational learning of multi-devices within the infocommunication biosphere

Abstract

Introduction: The purpose of this study is to understand how transgenerational learning of digital interconnection across multiple devices occurs among university students, based on the assumption that experiences within the infocommunicational biosphere are related to individual, cultural, and structural dimensions from a transgenerational perspective. Methodology: Using a qualitative approach with an interpretative design, four life stories of university students with backgrounds in digital interconnection in various family contexts were analyzed. The information analysis was conducted using thematic coding, what made it possible to identify significant patterns in the narratives. Results and discussion: The analysis revealed seven emerging categories: First contact with technology, transformation in its use, impact on family dynamics, technology as an educational tool, centrality of video games, challenges and barriers, and effects on personality, showing that digital interconnection is woven like a network of reciprocal learning back and forth between adults and youth, and between analog and digital technologies. The native-digital immigrant dichotomy is dismantled. Conclusions: The convergence of analog and digital devices in a transgenerational framework is how younger generations adapt to technological innovations, being a process not innate but constructed through socialization and family coexistence. Thus, there is a recognition of the need to create theoretical frameworks that acknowledge this social and family dynamic to bridge the digital divide from a relational perspective and not just a technological one.