Childhood - How has the Position of Children Improved? Flashcards
March of progress view of the position of children
Position of children in western societies has been gradually improving and it better than it has ever been today
Two sociologists who believe in the march of progress view
Ariès and Shorter
Why is the position of children better than that of children in previous generations according to Ariès and Shorter? (5 reasons)
Children are:
-More valued
-Better cared for
-Better educated
-Healthier
-Have more rights
What has led to lower IMR?
Better healthcare
What can parents afford to do as result of higher living standards and smaller family sizes?
Afford to provide for their children’s needs properly
Average cost of raising child to age of 18 in UK
£150,000 - £200,000
What has the family became more according to march of progress sociologists?
More child-centred
Why has the family become more child-centred?
Because parents invest more emotionally and financially into their children than ever before
Who developed the idea of toxic childhood?
Palmer
What does Palmer’s toxic childhood suggests about childhood which is different to march of progress view?
It isn’t better than it has ever been
What has been damaged in the last 25 years due to rapid technological and cultural changes according to Palmer’s toxic childhood?
Children’s emotional, physical and intellectual development
Examples of technological and cultural changes
Junk food
Intensive marketing to children
Computer games
Long hours worked by parents
Growing pressure on educational testing
What do UK youths have above rates in international league tables of? (Palmer’s toxic childhood)
Obesity
Self-harm
Drug/alcohol abuse
Violence
Early sexual experience
Teenage pregnancies
Out of 21 countries, what did UNICEF put the UK at following a report on Well-being of the Child?
16/21
What do conflict sociologists (Marxists and feminists) argue society is based on?
Conflict between different social groups as some groups having more wealth, status and power than others
What is the march of progress view based on according to conflict sociologists?
False and idealised images that ignore inequalities
Two reasons why conflict sociologists criticise the march of progress view
Inequalities among children are ignored
Inequalities between children and adults are ignored
4 types of inequalities among children
Cultural
Gender
Ethnic
Classm
Where are 90% of lowest body-weight babies born? (Cultural differences among children)
Developing countries
What are boys more likely to be able to do unaccompanied from a younger age than girls according to Hillman? (Gender differences among children)
Cross or cycle on roads
Use buses
Go out after dark
Following a study of 15-16 year olds, what are Asian parents more likely to be according to Brannen? (Ethnic differences among children)
More likely to be strict to their daughters than other parents
What could be a restriction of childhood according to Bhatti? (Ethnic differences among children)
Ideas of izzat
Izzit
Concept of honour mostly in North Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cultures
What babies are poor mothers more likely to have? (Class differences among children)
Low body-weight babies
What are children born into poorer families more likely to do? (Class differences among children)
Die during infancy or childhood
What are many of the things that march of progress sociologists see as protection and care a new form of according to Firestone and Holt?
A new form of oppression and control
What is protection of children from paid work a form of according to Firestone?
Inequality
What is protection of children from paid work a way of making children according to Firestone?
Making children more dependent, powerless and subject to adult control
Child liberationalism
View that children need to be freed from adult control
What extreme form can adult control over children take?
Extreme form of physical neglect or physical/sexual abuse
How many children were subject to the Child Protection Plan in 2022?
50,920
How many children were subject to the Child Protection Plan in 2013?
43,000
How many calls does Child Line receive a year from children saying they have been sexually or physically abused?
20,000
Examples of how children’s movements in industrial societies are highly regulated
Shops may display signs like “no schoolchildren” or “only 2 schoolchildren allowed at once”
What percentage of primary school children were allowed to travel to and from school alone in 1971?
86%
What percentage of primary school children were allowed to travel to and from school alone in 2010?
25%
Examples of how adults control children’s daily routines
Adults control time children wake up, eat, go to school and sleep
3 ways in which adults control their children’s bodies
Control his they look
Control how their touch their own bodies
Touch their children’s bodies when they want (E.g. they wash them, pick them up and cuddle them)
Why are children economically dependent on adults?
Because children’s opportunities to earn money are limited
Who do state child benefits go to?
Parents, instead of children
How is pocket money a way in which scuffs control children’s access to money?
Pocket money may be given by parents due to good behaviour
Parents will control what the money is spent on
Who developed idea of age patriarchy?
Gittins
What does the age patriarchy state?
There are inequalities between children and adults due to adult domination and child dependency
Definition of patriarchy
Rule by the father
How is father power present?
In form of violence against children and women
According to a study of 200 women who left abusive partners by Humphreys and Thiara, what was the reason for 25% of them?
Fears for children’s lives
According to Hockey and James, how do children resist the status of child?
By acting like adults through activities such as drinking, smoking and swearing
What is childhood according to Hockey and James?
A concept that most children want to escaped
What do critics of child liberationalist view argue about some adult control over children?
It is justified on grounds that children can’t make rational choices so are unable to safeguard themselves
What does the ‘new sociology of childhood’ see children as?
Active agents who play a major part in creating their own childhood, instead of children being adults in the making
How do children play an active role in divorce according to Smart et al?
By trying to make the situation better
