Exploring parental attitudes, awareness and support for digital reading in preschoolers: A quantitative comparison of rural and urban contexts

Digital reading has become prevalent among preschoolers, yet parental roles in shaping this practice remain underexplored. Guided by the attitude, skill and knowledge model, this study surveyed parental attitudes, awareness and support regarding children's digital reading across urban, township and rural China ( N = 1393). Quantitative analyses revealed the following: (1) parents held moderately positive attitudes to children's digital reading, prioritizing audio books over reading e-picture books, with 94.1% of them retaining a print book preference; rural/township parents exhibited greater digital openness than their urban counterparts; (2) advantages (notably interest stimulation) were more strongly perceived than risks (primarily health/privacy), with urban parents demonstrating more nuanced risk-awareness; (3) support behaviors – interactive guidance and risk management – varied significantly by region, reflecting structural inequalities : urban parents provided higher-quality support (e.g., prioritizing child–device guidance), while rural parents lagged in privacy management, widening digital literacy gaps. Implications include the need for targeted interventions: enhancing rural parental digital literacy, equipping communities with resources, and integrating equitable digital reading support into early education policies to mitigate disparities and optimize digital reading’s developmental potential.