{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,16]],"date-time":"2026-03-16T20:51:32Z","timestamp":1773694292115,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,21]],"date-time":"2025-02-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1740096000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"\u201cApplication of VR technology and neural networks in the field of computer security and digital forensics\u201d","award":["NPOO2024-1"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NPOO2024-1"]}]},{"name":"Ministry of Science, Education, and Youth through EU funding (Recovery and Resilience Facility)","award":["NPOO2024-1"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NPOO2024-1"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Informatics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The fourth industrial revolution has ushered in a new era in which technology is seamlessly integrated into daily life. The digital transformation has created new media formats that require the development of robust digital skills to navigate this landscape. By utilising the Youth Digital Skills Indicator (yDSI) and integrating it with the Digital Competence Framework for Citizens (DigComp 2.2), this research examines media habits and digital competences among Croatian youth aged 10\u201324, corresponding to Generations Alpha and Z. A sample of 231 participants across three competence domains\u2014information literacy, security and communication\u2014revealed statistically significant generational differences in the first two areas of digital skills. Furthermore, gender-based analyses, conducted using the Mann\u2013Whitney U-test and Spearman correlations for Likert scale responses, showed no significant differences. These findings deepen our understanding of digital natives, how media habits evolve and influence their digital skills, highlighting the need for more tailored strategies to enhance their competences and bridge generational gaps.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/informatics12010023","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,21]],"date-time":"2025-02-21T06:39:07Z","timestamp":1740119947000},"page":"23","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Digital Competences of Digital Natives: Measuring Skills in the Modern Technology Environment"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2264-7759","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Danijela","family":"Pongrac","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Zagreb University of Applied Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4921-1514","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marta","family":"Ali\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Zagreb University of Applied Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}]},{"given":"Brigitta","family":"Cafuta","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science, Zagreb University of Applied Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"159","DOI":"10.1080\/17508975.2021.1873625","article-title":"Towards a 4th industrial revolution","volume":"13","author":"Ross","year":"2021","journal-title":"Intell. 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