Childhood Flashcards
Who says that common-sense thinking sees childhood as ‘a natural and inevitable phase of life that we all go through’?
Michael Wyness (2006)
What are the key features of Wyness’ theories?
- Childhood and adulthood are seen as opposites, and childhood is seen as lacking the key attributes of being a person which are attained
- Children are not seen in their own rights but in terms of what they will become later, they are seen as future adults
Who argued that childhood is a social construction, comparing the modern conceptions of childhood to medieval times?
Philippe Ariès (1973)
Who argued that conceptions of childhood began to appear as church leaders began to see children as ‘fragile creatures who needed to be safeguarded and reformed’?
Ariès
What has changed since sciences such as psychology, psychoanalysis and paediatrics were developed?
Society has become more child-centred with the well-being and development of children seen as very important
Who advances with a modern context of Ariès to explain the development of childhood?
Edward Shorter (1976)
Who argued that children were born good and could become reasoning adults if socialised correctly?
Jean Jacques Rousseau
Who believes that the explanation for changes in childhood as lying in technological change?
Neil Postman (1982)
Who argues that the distinction between childhood and adulthood has been eroded in recent years so that childhood no longer exists as a distinct stage in life course?
Neil Postman (1982)
How was mass media blamed for the disappearance of childhood?
The growth of mass media has exposed children to the adult world. It is easy for them to access images of sex and they can view suffering and death in televisions news programmes
Ways that adulthood and childhood is increasingly blurred in a modern society
- children dressing in more adult and sometimes more sexualised ways
- adults trying to dress and act in more youthful ways
Who found that there was strong peer pressure amongst children to persuade their parents to buy them the latest designer goods?
Evans and Chandler (2006)
Who accepts that there is an increasing confusion over the nature of childhood but he does not believe it is disappearing as a distinct stage in the life course?
Jenks (2005)
Who argued that children continue to be highly regulated and restricted by laws which control behaviour in public spaces, the consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, education, sexuality and political rights?
Jenks (2005)
Who argues that most ideas on childhood are adults - they see children form an adult point of view and are biased in favour of adults at the expense of children?
Berry Mayall (2004)
