Rude or shrewd? Reframing media devices as care structures and child use as accommodation

This publication is included in the Autistic Autism Scholarship Project. one author of this publication is identified as autistic in the project.

About the autistic author marker

Metadata sources used for this reference

OpenAlex Crossref OpenCitations
Learn more about the sources used

Harrison, K. (2019). Rude or shrewd? Reframing media devices as care structures and child use as accommodation. Journal of Children and Media, 13(3), 367-375. https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2019.1628192

Publication date: 12 Jun 2019 Added to AutiHub: 11 Sep 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) OpenAlex source

This publication is integrated into AutiHub through:

Authors

Publication authors
1
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 1 (100.0%)
  1. Kristen Harrison *

Abstract

Communication research has traditionally defined its subject as language and the chief gratification of media use as the exchange of information between senders and receivers. However, information exchange falls short as an explanation for child media practices like those described in Gaming Disorder, recently classified as a disease by the World Health Organization. Why have devices become so enmeshed in children’s lives, both inside and outside the home? Using research on the media practices of children with disabilities like autism and ADHD as a template, this commentary calls for an ecological reconceptualization of media devices as “care structures” that provide not just children with disabilities, but all children, with largely unrecognized accommodations beyond the standard informational, emotional, and relational gratifications specified in traditional media gratifications research. Understanding “media curb cuts” and other unacknowledged accommodations will be essential for making sense of children’s attachments to media and finding solutions for family conflict associated with child media use.

Bibliography cited by this reference

Cited references are imported from external metadata sources when they are available. The list may be partial.

Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 12 Sep 2026 01:05.

Cited references
16
With a DOI
14
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
2
2 / 16 (12.5%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
1 / 16 (6.2%)
References with detected author names
15 / 16 (93.8%)
Without detected author names
1
Without a structured title
1
Without a stable identifier
2
References with raw author names still to review
1
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
42
From DOI or external metadata
42
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
4
9 / 42 (21.4%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 33 / 42 (78.6%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
2 / 42 (4.8%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 2 / 9 (22.2%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 1 / 40 (2.5%).
  1. Scannell P. (2014). Television and the meaning of “live”: An enquiry into the human situation . Choice Reviews Online, 52(01), 52-0105-52-0105. American Library Association.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.5860/choice.52-0105 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W581845043
    Crossref OpenAlex
  2. Meryl Alper (2017). Giving Voice . The MIT Press.
    Type: Book DOI: 10.7551/mitpress/10771.001.0001 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4254014975
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  3. John L. Sherry (2004). Flow and Media Enjoyment . Communication Theory, 14(4), 328-347. Oxford University Press (OUP).
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-2885.2004.tb00318.x OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2142032252
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  4. Thomas E. Ruggiero (2000). Uses and Gratifications Theory in the 21st Century . Mass Communication and Society, 3(1), 3-37. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1207/s15327825mcs0301_02 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2071141511
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  5. Meryl Alper (2018). Inclusive sensory ethnography: Studying new media and neurodiversity in everyday life . New Media & Society, 20(10), 3560-3579. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/1461444818755394 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2794285787
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  6. Gregory Scott (2018). An Exploratory Survey of Sound Levels in New York City Restaurants and Bars . Open Journal of Social Sciences, 06(08), 64-84. Scientific Research Publishing, Inc..
    Type: Article DOI: 10.4236/jss.2018.68005 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2885110134
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  7. Micah Mazurek , Paul Shattuck , Mary Wagner , Benjamin P. Cooper (2012). Prevalence and Correlates of Screen-Based Media Use Among Youths with Autism Spectrum Disorders . Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 42(8), 1757-1767. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10803-011-1413-8 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2076201885
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  8. Sarah E. Domoff , Kristen Harrison * , Ashley N. Gearhardt , Douglas A. Gentile , Julie C. Lumeng , Alison L. Miller (2019). Development and validation of the Problematic Media Use Measure: A parent report measure of screen media “addiction” in children. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8(1), 2-11. American Psychological Association (APA).
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000163 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2770728189
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  9. Zheng Wang , Annie Lang (2012). Reconceptualizing Excitation Transfer as Motivational Activation Changes and a Test of the Television Program Context Effects . Media Psychology, 15(1), 68-92. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/15213269.2011.649604 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2122938189
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  10. Douglas Gentile (2009). Pathological Video-Game Use Among Youth Ages 8 to 18 . Psychological Science, 20(5), 594-602. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02340.x OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2098620135
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  11. Winnie Dunn , Lauren Little , Evan Dean , Sara Robertson , Benjamin Evans (2016). The State of the Science on Sensory Factors and Their Impact on Daily Life for Children . OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research, 36(2_suppl), 3S-26S. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/1539449215617923 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2434228612
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  12. Kristen Harrison * , Lia Vallina , Amelia Couture Bue , Halie Wenhold , Jessica D. Moorman (2019). Sensory curation: theorizing media use for sensory regulation and implications for family media conflict . Media Psychology, 22(4), 653-688. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/15213269.2018.1496024 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2885652921
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  13. Jenny S. Radesky , Caroline J. Kistin , Barry Zuckerman , Katie Nitzberg , Jamie Gross , Margot Kaplan-Sanoff et al. (2014). Patterns of Mobile Device Use by Caregivers and Children During Meals in Fast Food Restaurants . Pediatrics, 133(4), e843-e849. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1542/peds.2013-3703 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2116183712
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  14. Linder K. (2016). Student uses and perceptions of closed captions and transcripts: Results from a national study . Student uses and perceptions of closed captions and transcripts: Results from a national study.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  15. Jason C. Travers , Michael P. Krezmien , Candace Mulcahy , Matthew Tincani (2014). Racial Disparity in Administrative Autism Identification Across the United States During 2000 and 2007 . The Journal of Special Education, 48(3), 155-166. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/0022466912454014 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2142255561
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  16. Wartella, E., Rideout, V., Lauricella, A. R. & Connell, S. (2014). Revised parenting in the age of digital technology: A national surveyReport of the Center on Media and Human Development, School of Communication. Illinois, USA: Northwestern University.
    Type: Other
    Crossref