Families and Households: Childhood Flashcards
(112 cards)
1
Q
What is a social construction?
A
Something created, made, and defined by society.
2
Q
In what ways is childhood a social construction?
A
- Cross-cultural variations
- Historical Differences
3
Q
What is the modern western notion of childhood?
A
Childhood is seen as a special time. Children are viewed as physically and psycologically immature. They are seen as needing a lengthy protected period of nurturing and socialisation before they enter into adult society and take on its responsibilities.
4
Q
Pilcher (1995)
A
States the most important feature of modern childhood is separateness. Childhood is seen as a clear and distinct life stage and children occupy a seperate status from adults.
5
Q
How is seperateness seen in society?
A
- Laws regulating what children are allowed, required or forbidden to do.
- Differences in dress, and prodcts and services aimed at children.
6
Q
How and why are children ‘quarantined’?
A
Childhood is seen as a ‘golden age’ of innocence and happiness, so children are viewed as vulnerable and in need of protection from the dangers of the adult world. Children lead lives of leisure and play and are excluded from paid work.
7
Q
Wagg (1992)
A
Argues there is no single universal childhood experienced by all, and childhood should be distinguoshed from mere biological immaturity. Childhood is thus a social construct.
8
Q
Benedict (1934)
A
Argues children in simpler, non-industrial societies are treated differently from their modern western counterparts.
9
Q
How are children in simple non-industrial societies treated differently from their modern western counterparts?
A
- They take responsibility at an early age.
- Less value is placed on obedience to adult authority.
- Children’s sexual behaviours are viewed differently.
10
Q
Punch (2001)
A
Studied childhood in rural Bolivia and found that once children are five years old, they are expected to take work responsibility in the home and community.
11
Q
Holmes (1974)
A
Study of a Samoan village foung that “too young” was neber given as a reason for not permitting a child to undertake a task.
12
Q
Firth (1970)
A
Found that among the Tikopia of the western pacific, doing as your told by a grownup is regarded as a concession to be granted by the child, not a right to be expected by the adult.
13
Q
Malinowski (1957)
A
Found that among the Tobriand Islanders of the south-west pacific adults took an attitude of ‘tolerance and amuse interest’ towards childrens sexual explorations and activities.
14
Q
What is meant by the globalisation of childhood?
A
International humanitarian and welfare agencies have exported and imposed on the world, western norms of childhood as a seperate life stage, based on the nuclear family and school in which children have no economic role and are vulnerable dependents.
15
Q
Outline and explain two ways in which the western notion childhood has become globalised
A
- Global laws such as the human rights act, outline universal rights for children including the right to life, survival and development.
- Humanitarian and welfare agencies have exported western norms of childhood
16
Q
Aries (1960)
A
Argues in medieval Europe the idea of childhood did not exist. Soon after being weaned, the child entered wider society on much the same terms as an adult, beginning work from an early age.
17
Q
How does art work from the medieval period support Aries (1960) view of childhood?
A
Children appear without any of the characteristics of childhood, they are simply depicted on a smaller scale.
18
Q
How were children viewed in the medieval times?
A
They were in effect mini-adults with the same rights, duties and skills. The law made no distinction between children and adults and children often faced the same sereve punishment as adults.
19
Q
Shorter (1975)
A
Argues that in the past high death rates encouraged indifference and neglect torwards infants. It was not uncommon for parents to give a new born baby the name of a recently dead sibling, or to refer to the baby as ‘it’.
20
Q
What elements of the modern notion of childhood began to emerge from the 13th century onwards?
A
- Schools began to specialise in the education of the young.
- There was a growing distinction between children’s and adults clothing.
- Handbooks on child rearing were eidley available.
21
Q
When did handbooks on childrearing become more widley available?
A
18th Century
22
Q
Why did schools specialise in children’s education?
A
Becuase of church influence, which saw children as fragile ‘creatures of God’ in need of discipline and protection from wordly evils.
23
Q
How was there a growing distinction between children’s and adults clothing?
A
By the 17th century an upper-class boy would be dressed in ‘an outfit reserved for his own age group which would set him apart from adults’.
24
Q
What is a ‘cult of childhood’ according to Aries?
A
He argues that we have moved into a world obsessed with childhood, describing the 20th century as the ‘century of the child’.
25
Pollock (1983)
Argues that it is most appropriate to say that in the middle ages society simply had a different notion of childhood, rather than arguing it did not exist.
26
When was the first law specific to child protection introduced?
1889
27
Children's Charter (1889)
Enabled the state to intervene, for the first time, in relations between parents and children. Police could arrest anyone found ill-treating a child, and enter a home if a child was thought to be in danger.
28
What are some reasons for changes in the position of children in the west?
1. Laws restricting child labour
2. Introduction of compulsory schooling
3. Child protection and welfare legistlation
4. Childrens rights
5. Declining family size/lower infant mortlaity
6. Medical knowledge
29
Which process underlies many of the changes in the position of children during the 19th and 20th centuries?
Industrialisation.
30
How has industrailsation affected childhood?
Modern industry needs an educated workforce and this requires compulsory schooling of the young. The higher standards of living and better welfare provision that industry makes possible leads to lower infant mortality.
31
How have laws restricting child labour changed the position of childen in the west?
Children are no longer economic assets who could earn a wage for their family, instead they are an economic liability and financially dependent on parents.
32
How has the introduction of compulsory schooling changed the position of children in the west?
Compulsory schooling was introduced in 1880. School seperated a child's world from an adults world, and also meant children could no longer work, they were even more dependent on family for finances.
33
How has child protection and welfare legislation changed the position of children in the west?
The Prevention of Cruelty to Children Act (1889) and the Children Act (1989) made the welfare of the child a fundamental principle underpinning the work of agencies such as social services.
34
1989 Children Act
Argues parents have 'responsibilities' rather than 'rights' in relation to children.
35
**United Nations Convention **on the rights of the child (1989)
Lays down basic rights for children such as entitlement to healthcare and education, protection from harm and abuse and the right to participate in decisions that affect them such as custody cases.
36
How have declining family size and lower infant mortality rates affected the position of children?
These have encouraged parents to make greater financial and emotional investments in the few children they now have.
37
How has increased medical knowledge affected the position of children?
Childhood development has become the subject of more medical knowledge and research. Theories of child development began to appear from the late 19th century stressing that children need supervision and protection.
38
Donzelot (1977)
Observes how theories of child development began to appear from the late 19th century, which stressed that children need supervision and protection.
39
How have laws that apply specifically to children changes the position of children in the west?
Minimum age restrictions and other laws designed specifically for children, reinforce the idea that children are different from adults and so different rules must be applied to them.
40
What four ideas explore the future of childhood?
1. The disapearance of childhood
2. A separate childhood
3. Childhood in postmodernity
4. The globalisation of childhood
41
Postman (1994)
Argues childhood is disappearing at a dazzling speed.
42
What four trends support the disappearence of childhood?
1. Giving children the same rights as adults
2. The disappearence of children's traditional unsupervised games
3. Growing similarities between adult and children's clothing.
4. Similarities in adult and childrens activities.
43
According to Postman (1994) what causes both the emergence of childhood as well as its disappearence?
The rise and fall of print culture and its replacement through telivision culture.
44
How does telivision contribute to the disappearence of childhood?
It blurs the distinction between childhood and adulthood by destroying the information heirarchy. The boundary between adults and children is broken down, adult authority diminishes and the ignorence and innocence of childhood is replaced by knowledge and cynicism.
45
How does TV destroy the information heirarchy?
Unlike the printed word, TV does not require special skills to be accessed making information available to adults and children alike.
46
What is the counterpart to the disappearence of childhood?
The disappearence of adulthood, where adults' and childrens' tastes become indistinguishable.
47
Why did childhood emerge as a seperate status in the 19th century?
Becuase mass literacy and the printed word created an information heirarchy. Because children cannot read, childhood began to be associated with innocence and ignorance.
48
How is postman criticised?
* He attributes too much to television as a single cuase, and ignores other influences.
* There are systems and measures in place that prevent children from seeing innapropriate material such as age restrictions and parental controls.
* Childrens games are not dying out they have simply moved to a seperate sphere, e.g. online.
49
Opie and Opie (1993)
Argue childhood is not disappearing. Based on their research into children's games, rhymes, and songs they argue there is strong evidence of a seperate children's culture.
50
Jenks (2005)
Argues childhood was a creation of modern society and it is undergoing change as society moves from modernity to postmodernity.
51
What is the significance of relationships in a postmodern society?
* In a postmodern society, the pace of change speeds up and relationships become more unstable.
* This generates higher feelings of insecurity.
* Relationships with children become more important and a source of adult identity and stability.
52
Does Jenks (2005) agree with Postman (1994)?
NO - Jenks argues that childhood continues to be a seperate status and the restrictions placed on children, both legal and famillial, continue to seperate them from adults.
53
How is Jenks (2005) criticised?
* Guilty of over-generalising, making sweeping statements that all children are in the same position.
* The evidence used comes from small unrepresentative studies.
54
Why are children viewed as vulnerable in postmodern society?
* Relationships with children are adults' last refuge from uncertainty.
* Adults become more fearful of their children's security and more preoccupied with protecting them.
* This further strengthens the prevailing view of children as vulnerable and in need of protection that emerged with the modern notion of childhood.
55
Frank Furedi (2001)
Argued that a ‘culture of fear’ pervades parenting today, with parents perceiving their children as vulnerable, and as being perpetually at risk from several threats: from strangers, traffic, toys, and from the threat of falling behind in their development.
56
How can the postmodern view of childhood be criticised?
There are many factors, other than the shift into a postmodern society which have increased our surveillance on children. For example, moral panics about child abduction, which occured in the 1980s.
57
How can the globalisation of childhood be used to criticise Postman's views?
Western norms of childhood have been exported and imposed on the rest of the world so childhood is far from disappearing.
58
What are some examples of how western notions of childhood have been exported across the globe?
1. Campaigns against child labour
2. Concerns about 'street children'
59
What do **Child liberationalists** believe?
Argue western childhood is oppressive and believe that western notions of childhood are being globalised.
60
Mayall (2004)
* Argues that seeing childhood as socially constructed risks seeing children from an adultist viewpoint.
* Children are viewed as socialisation projects for adults to mould, shape and develop.
61
New sociology of childhood
* Doesn't see children as simply 'adults in the making'.
* Sees children as active agents, who play a major part in creating their own childhoods.
62
Smart (2011)
The new approach aims to include the views and experiences of children themselves while they are living through childhood.
63
Who argued sociology should focus on the 'present tense of childhood'?
**Mayall** - argued sociology should study ordinary everyday life from the childs perspective.
64
Mason and Tipper (2008)
Note how children actively create their own definitions of who is 'family'. This may include people who are not proper 'relatives' but who they regard as close.
65
Smart et al (2001)
Study of divorce found that far from being passive victims, children were actively involved in trying to make the situation better for everyone.
66
What are some of the strengths of the new sociology of childhood?
* It utilises methodology such as infromal unstructured interviews, which empower children to express their own views.
* Allows researchers to see the world from the child's point of view.
* Favoured by child liberationalists as it enables sociologists to explore the diversity of childhood.
67
What does the March of Progress view of childhood argue?
* That the position of children in Western societies has been steadily improving.
* Aries and Shorter argue that today's children are more valued, better cared for, protectedc and educated.
68
What examples support the march of progress view of childhood?
1. Children today are protected from harm and exploitation by law.
2. Specialists cater for childrens emotional, psycological and medical needs.
3. Better healthcare and medicine means children have higher chances of survival.
69
What is meant by child-centeredness?
The idea that children are the focal point of the family, condulted on decisions. Parents emotionally and financially invest in their children more than ever. Parents also have higher aspirations for children.
70
How much has a child cost their parents by the time they reach 21?
£227,000
71
How has society become more child-centered?
Media output and leisure activities are designed specifically for children
72
How has the family become more child-centered?
* Adults have fewer children
* Parents spend more money on children (Marxism 'Pester power')
* Child welfare policies protect children's rights
* Parents have higher aspirations for children
* Parents and children spend more time together - Helicopter parenting
73
Who uses the term 'Toxic Childhood'?
Palmer (2006)
74
Palmer (2006)
Argues rapid cultural and technological changes in the past 25 years have damaged children's emotional, intellectual and physical development.
75
What are some examples of changes which have damaged children's development?
* Long hours worked by parents
* Junk food
* Video Games
* Growing emphasis on testing in eductaion
76
Margo and Dixon (2006)
Have drawn on studies which show that UK youth are at the top of international legaue tables for obseity, self-harm, drug and alchohol abuse, violence and teenage pregnancy.
77
UNICEF survey (2007)
Ranked the UK 21/25 for children's well beingThis shows that the notion of childhood as an innocent, protected stage is under threat.
78
Why has the idea of toxic childhood been criticised?
* It is difficult to draw frim conclusions about childhood as not all children are affected equally by these trends. For example, teenage pregnancy increases amoung poorer social groups.
* Womack (2007) recognises that whilst some children have misirabe and despirate lives, other's don't.
79
Womack (2007)
Recognises that whilst some children have miserable and despearte lives, others do not.
80
How is childhood becoming a seperate **age-status**?
Childhood is an age-phase which is being continually reshaped and reformed as a consequence of key familal patterns and trends.
81
Why is childhood more isolated?
Becuase families are smaller and there are fewer neighbourhood children.
82
Why do children have more power?
Their relative scarcity makes them more valued and poweful.
83
How do parents 'invest' in their children?
1. Emotionally
2. Financially
84
What two levels of inequality are linked to the conflict view of childhood?
1. The inequality between children and adults
2. Inequalities between different children
85
Do conflict sociologists agree with the March of Progess view?
NO - They believe it is based on a false, idealised image which ignores important problems and inequalities that children face.
86
Which factors affect children's experience of childhood?
1. Nationality
2. Gender
3. Ethnicity
4. Social class
87
How does Nationality affect childrens experiences of childhood?
Different nationalities and countries experience different childhoods and life chances. 90% of the world's low birth-weight babies are born in developing countries.
88
How does gender affect childrens experiences of childhood?
Boys are more likely to be allowed to cross or cycle on roads, use busses and go out unaccompanied at night. Girls also do more domestic labour, especially in single parent families.
89
Hillman (1993)
Argued boys are more likely to be allowed to cross of cycle on roads, use buses and go out unaccompanied at night.
90
Bonke (1999)
Found girls do more domestic labour especially in single parent families, where they do 5 times more housework than boys.
91
How does ethnicity affect childhood?
Asian parents are more likely than other parents to be strict on their daughters, due to ideas of izzat and family honour.
92
Brannen (1994)
Study of 15-16 year-olds found Asian parents were more likely than other parents to be strict torwards their daughters.
93
Bahatti (1999)
Found that ideas of izzat (family honour) could be a restriction on children, particularly on the behaviour of girls.
94
How does social class affect children's experience of childhood?
* Poor mothers are more likely to have low birth-weight babies which is linked to delayed physical and intellectual development.
* Have less access to toys, and material resources.
* Spend less time with parents due to shift partterns and an inability to take time off work.
95
Howard (2001)
Found children born into poor families are more likely to die in infancy or childhood, suffer longstanding illness, and to be placed on the at-risk register.
96
Firestone and Holt (1974)
Argue that many of the things functionalists see positively regarding care and protection of children, are in fact new forms of oppression and control.
97
What are examples of adult control according to child liberationalism?
1. Neglect and abuse
2. Policing children's spaces
3. Control over children's time
4. Contol over childrens bodies
5. Access to resources
98
How many calls a year does childline recieve from children reporting physical or sexual abuse?
20,000
99
Child Protection Register (2013)
43,000 children were deemed to be at risk of significant harm, often from their own parents.
100
How do adults control childrens spaces?
* Children are restricted from certain areas: bars, pubs, and shops may display signs which say 'no school children'.
* Fears about road safety and stranger danger means children dont walk to school by themselves.
* Children are given certain areas where they are allowed to 'play' safely.
101
Katz (2004)
Described hom rural Sudanese children roam freely both within their village and serveral kilometers outsider of it.
102
Hillman (2010)
Found that in 1971, 80% of 7-8 year olds were allowed to go to school without adult supervision, which by 2010 had fallen to just 25%.
103
Cunningham (2007)
Found that the home habitat of 8-year olds has shrunk to 1/9th of the size it was 25 years ago.
104
How do adults control childrens time?
* They control their child's daily routine, including the time they get up, go to sleep, eat, watch television and play outside.
* Parents also control the speed at which their child grows up by defining whether a child is 'too old' or 'too young' for an activity, responsibility, or behaviour.
105
How do adults control children's bodies?
* Control how children sit, walk, run, what they wear and how they do their hair.
* It is taken for granted that adults my touch children in centain ways, such as cuddling them, and holding hands.
* Adults restrict how children touch their own bodies for example not allpwing them to suck their thumb.
106
How do adults control children's access to resources?
* Children have only limited opportunities to make money so they remain economically dependent on adults.
* Child benefits are paid to the parent rather than the child.
* Pocket money is based on the parents discression and their may be restrictions in what it can be spent on.
107
What evidence is there for childhood being oppressive?
1. Acting up: Children act older in order to rebel.
2. Acting down: Children act younger to reclaim their sense of childhood.
108
What is **age patriarchy**?
Adult domination over children.
109
Gittens (1998)
Uses the term 'Age patriarchy' to describe inequalities between adults and children. She argues that evidence for the oppressive nature of childhood are the stratergies children use to resist the status of child and the restrictions that come with it.
110
James (1993)
Identifies acting up and actong down as the two stratergies children use to rebell against the oppressive nature of childhood.
111
How is the conflict view of childhood criticised?
Critics argue that some adult control over children's lives is justified on the grounds that children cannot make rational decisions so are unable to safeguard their interests themselves. Children are also not as powerless as child liberationalists claim.
112
What evidence suggests that children are not as powerless as child liberationalists claim?
Children have huge amounts of legal rights and are protected by the law. The 1989 Children Act and the UN convention on the rights of the child establish this.
