<![CDATA[The use of digital devices among young children in Indonesia continues to rise, yet research on Muslim parents’ beliefs in mediating their children’s device use remains limited, particularly in Madura. This study explores the self-efficacy experiences of Muslim parents in Pamekasan in mediating young children’s device use by integrating Bandura’s self-efficacy theory with the concepts of tarbiyah, or Islamic character education, and muraqabah, the awareness of being constantly watched by God. Using a qualitative approach with a transcendental phenomenological design, the study involved fifteen parents from five subdistricts selected through purposive sampling, including one single parent and three parents in long-distance marriages. Data were collected from January to July 2026 through semi-structured interviews, nonparticipant observation, and documentation, and were analyzed using Moustakas’s phenomenological procedures. The findings revealed three mediation patterns based on reported practices rather than independently measured self-efficacy. Four parents followed a democratic-hybrid pattern combining clear rules, planned supervision, and dialogue. Two parents adopted a restrictive-hybrid pattern through two paths, namely conviction with technical safeguards and activity redirection. Nine parents showed a permissive-hybrid pattern, commonly involving flexible rules or device-based soothing; explicit confidence was not elicited for every participant. Some accounts linked fatigue, family circumstances, and social expectations to inconsistent device boundaries, while worship routines offered practical opportunities for setting limits. This study applies self-efficacy theory to religiously grounded digital parenting and proposes three exploratory propositions for future testing. The findings may inform early childhood education institutions, religious leaders, and health services in designing parent support programs that distinguish problems of belief from family-related constraints.]]>
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