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In this study, an integrated quantitative and qualitative research design was employed to study some of the ways in which the diffusion of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) is related to the disposition of physical and symbolic space within families. To begin with the concepts of physical and symbolic space are elaborated and an increasing compartmentalization of family life is postulated. The results are based on an integrated quantitative and qualitative research design. From over 900 telephone interviews a typology of family types based on possession of media appliances was constructed, divided into "traditional"(low media density), "intermediate" (average media density), and "mediated" (high media density) families. This typology was then used as a basis for selecting 38 families for in-depth-interviews. Out of these, ten families were chosen as case-studies to participate in a Family Interaction Game (FIG). The results of the FIG indicate (1) that it is not only media appliances that induce compartmentalization, but also the conceptions and organization of space that families employ; and (2) that besides the television set, the computer appears to be an important factor in shaping family space and should be studied accordingly. Furthermore, the interviews indicate that privacy is not always attainable in the family context--and especially not for teenagers. For them two options are available: they can either participate in lots of leisure activities outside the home or they can use the Internet to create their own private space. Contains 40 references, and 6 tables and 5 figures of data. (Author/RS)