The Global Kids Online project in Serbia was carried out by UNICEF Belgrade and the Institute of Psychology at the University of Belgrade. It aimed to address the gaps in systematic and continuous research related to children’s online experiences, rights, and needs and the specific challenges that arise from the particularities of the country context.
The report presents findings from the qualitative and quantitative elements of the study. The qualitative research was carried out in November and December 2015 and comprised eight focus groups with 35 children aged 10-17 years from four Belgrade schools. The quantitative research was conducted in March and April 2016 when 197 children aged 9 to 17 years, from 10 primary and 8 secondary schools in Serbia and their parents were interviewed.
The Global Kids Online team in Serbia identified a gap in the research on children’s lives in the digital world related to the underrepresentation of ethnic minority children and children with learning difficulties. To address the insufficient knowledge about these children’s internet practises, the team conducted focus groups with Roma children and children with additional educational needs enquiring about their online practices, skills, and overall experience with digital technologies. The researchers were particularly interested in how these children, who often face discrimination in the Serbian society, can be supported and if online technologies can be used to overcome their social marginalisation.
A further nationally representative survey was conducted in Serbia as part of the EU Kids Online network in 2018. For details see here.
Further materials from this study:
Working on knowledge exchange and impact
Recognising online hurtful behaviour among peers
Other publications by UNICEF Serbia
Research team
Dragan Popadić, Professor at Department of Psychology, University of Belgrade, Research team coordinator
Zoran Pavlović, Assistant Professor at Department of Psychology, University of Belgrade
Dalibor Petrović, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering, University of Belgrade
Dobrinka Kuzmanović, Assistant at the Faculty of Media and Communications and Researcher at the Department of Psychology, University of Belgrade
All resources developed by Global Kids Online, including this report, are available under a Creative Commons licence (CC BY-NC) and can be used only for non-commercial purposes and with attribution.
The preferred citation for this report is:
Popadić, D., Pavlović, Z., Petrović, D. and Kuzmanović, D. (2016) Global kids online Serbia: Balancing between Opportunities and Risks. Results from the Pilot Study, Belgrade: University of Belgrade, at: www.globalkidsonline/serbia
