Families & Households : Childhood

Question 1

Social construct

Answer 1

Something that is not a naturally occurring phenomenon & instead created by society.

Question 2

The modern western notion of childhood

Answer 2

-generallt accepted that children are fundamentally different to adults.
-psychologically immature & not competent.
-need lengthy period of nurturing & socialisation before being given adult responsibilities.

Question 3

The modern western notion of childhood: Pilcher (1996) - Separateness

Answer 3

Childhood is seen as a clear and distinct life stage & children occupy a separate status from adults.
-seen as golden age of innocence, vulnerability & protection from dangers of the adult world.
-they live in the somewhere of the family & education where adults provide for them.

Question 4

Separateness support

Answer 4

-laws regulating what children are allowed to do (gambling, sex, smoking etc).
-different clothing, products, entertainment etc.
-John & Prout say children are simple and see the world as balck & white & focus on their needs.
Adults ate complex, moral & make difficult decisions.

Question 5

Evaluation of the Modern western notion of childhood: Wagg (1992)

Answer 5

The distinct notion of childhood as a separate age status is not found in all societies & concept of childhood is not universal.
He says it is socially constructed & while all humans go through the same stages of physical development, different culture define and construct this process differently.

Question 6

Cultural relativity

Answer 6

Experiences of childhood will differ between cultures & within cultures.

Question 7

Childhood as a social construct: Cross cultural differences in childhood (Benedict 1934)

Answer 7

Argues children in simpler non industrial societies are treated differently.

Question 8

Benedict: Responsibility from early age

Answer 8

-Punch (2001) study of childhood in rural Bolivia found that once children are about 5, they’re expected to take work responsibilities in home & community without hesitation.
-Holmes (1974) study of Samoan village found that ‘too young’ was never a reason for not permitting a child to undertake a task, ‘whether it be the handling of dangerous tools, if a child thinks he can handle it, the parents do not object’.
-UK tribe suffered famine & expected to fend for selves from age of 3.

Question 9

Benedict: Less value placed on obedience to authority

Answer 9

Firth (1970) found that among the Tikopia of the western Pacific, doing as you are told by a grown up is regarded a concession not a right expected by an adult.

Question 10

Benedict: Sexual behaviour

Answer 10

Viewed differently.
Malinowski (1957) found that adults took an attitude of ‘tolerance & aided interest’ towards children’s sexual explorations in an island in Trobriand.

Question 11

Childhood as a social construct: Globalisation of Western childhood

Answer 11

Globalisation: world is becoming increasingly interconnected & barriers disappearing due to tech advances.

-western ideas of childhood have become globalised.
-international humanitarian & welfare agencies imposed western norms.
-child Labour is illegal in many counties, NF, children being innocent/vulnerable & not having an economic role etc.

May not apply to children in developing countries.

Question 12

Childhood as a social construct: Historical differences in childhood - Historical relativity (Aries 1960)

Answer 12

-argues in Middle Ages (10-13th century), children were ‘mini adults’.
-soon after being weened, they entered wider society & worked £ were economic assets.
-law didn’t make distinction between children & adults & faced same severe punishments.

Question 13

Historical differences in childhood - Historical relativity (Shorter 1975)

Answer 13

-argues high death rates encouraged indifference and neglect, esp towards infants.
-not uncommon for parents to give a newborn the name of a dead sibling, forget how many children they had or refer to child as “it.”

Question 14

Historical differences in childhood: The modern cult of childhood (Aries)

Answer 14

Modern notion of childhood emerged from 13th onwards:
-schools specialised in education for the young & reflected influence of Church as they saw children as ‘fragile creatures of God’ in need of protection from evil.
-distinction in children & adult clothing. By 17th, UC boys would be dressed in outfits reserved for their own age.
-by 18th, handbooks on child rearing were widely available (growing child centeredness).

20th century is obsessed with it & the ‘century of the child’

Question 15

The modern cult of childhood: Criticism (Pollock 1983)

Answer 15

-Criticised Aries for saying childhood didn’t exist in the past.
Argues it’s correct to say that in the Middle Ages, society had a diff notion of childhood from todays.
-Findings are class specific.
-Shorter supports.

His work is useful since it does how its socially constructed & ideas developed over time.

Question 16

Childhood as a social construct: Reasons for changes in the position of children - Laws

Answer 16

-laws restricting child Labour & excluding them from paid work.
-introduction of compulsory schooling.
-child protection & welfare legislation (1989 Children Act).
-laws & policies applying to children (smoking,sex).
-growth of idea of children’s rights (UN convention on Rights of the child 1989).

Question 17

Reasons for changes in the position of children - Social

Answer 17

-declining family size & lower infant mortality rates.
-children’s development became the subject of medical knowledge (Donzelot 1977) observed how theories of child development that began to appear from 19th stressed children’s need for supervision.

Industrialisation

Question 18

Has the position of childhood improved? MOP view

Answer 18

-taking steps towards a better childhood.
-better than ever before.
-supported by Aries & Shorter.
-“childhood has improved as the history of childhood was filled with abuse, neglect & high infant morality, dramatically decreased” - De Maude (1974)
-protected by exploration & catered for education, psychological & medical needs.
-better healthcare means that infant mortality rate in 1900 was 154/1000 & now 4/1000.

Question 19

MOP view: Child centred family

Answer 19

-parents invest time, emotion & money into their children.
-greater care & protection.
-high aspirations.
-focal point of society (activities).
-higher living standards & smaller family sizes means parents can provide for children’s needs properly.
By the time a child is 21, parents will have spent £227,000 on child.

Question 20

Criticism of MOP view: Toxic childhood (Palmer 2010)

Answer 20

Aches against cure.
-argued that children in the UK are experienced a toxic childhood.
-technological & cultural changes in the past 25 years have damaged children’s physical, emotional & intellectual development.
-a UNICEF survey (2013) found UK ranked 16/29 for children’s well-being.

-junk food, computer, neglect leading to obesity, mental illness, abuse of drugs etc.

Question 21

Has the position of childhood improved? The conflict view

Answer 21

Such as Marxists & feminists dispute this.
Argue that MOP view is based on false & idealised image ignoring inequalities:
-inequalities among children (opportunities & risks they face).
-inequalities between adults & children (oppressed and controlled & dependant).

Question 22

The conflict view: Inequalities among children - Gender differences

Answer 22

Not all children share the same status or experiences.
E.g. children of different nationalities are likely to experience diff childhoods & opportunities.
90% of low birth weight babies are born in developing countries.

Hillman 1993 found boys are more likely to cross or cycle on roads, use buses & go out in dark unaccompanied.
Bonke 1999 found that girls do more domestic labour esp in lone parent families, where they do 5X more housework than boys.

Question 23

The conflict view: Inequalities among children: Ethnic differences

Answer 23

-Brannen 1994 study of teens found Asians were stricter towards their daughters.
-Bhatti 1999 found that family honour was a restriction on girls behaviours in Asian families.

Question 24

The conflict view: Inequalities among children: Class differences

Answer 24

-women in poverty more likely y have low birth weight babies.
-Wordroffe found children of unskilled manual workers are 3X likelier to suffer hyperactivity & experience conduct disorders.
-Howard children born in poverty are likely to die in childhood, suffer illnesses & underachieve & be on child protection register.

Question 25

The conflict view: Inequalities between children & adults

Answer 25

MOPs argue adults in power use it to protect children (laws against child Labour).
Conflict theorists such as:
-Holt 1974 & Firestone 1979 say that these are forms of oppression & control & that protection from paid work is not a benefit, but an inequality.

They say it segregated children & makes them dependant & powerless & believe in child liberationism.

Question 26

Form of adult control: neglect & abuse

Answer 26

Can lead to physical neglect, or physical, sexual, psychological abuse etc.
-2013, 43,000 children subject to child protection plans and deemed at risk of significant harm (often by own parents).
-the charity ChildLike received over 20,000 calls annually from children saying they have been sexually/physically abused.

Question 27

Form of adult control: Children’s space

Answer 27

Children’s movement is regulated:
-signs for no schoolchildren.
-close surveillance over children in public spaces.
-fears about road safety & ‘stranger danger’ led to more children being driven to school.
E.g. 1971, 86% primary kids travelled home alone, 2010, this fell to 25%.
-according to Cunningham 2007, the ‘home habitat’ of 8 year olds (area they can travel alone) has shrunk to 1/9th of the size than 25 years earlier.

In contrast, Katz 2004 describes how rural Sudanese kids roam freely within multiple KMs of their village.

Question 28

Form of adult control: Children’s time

Answer 28

Adults in modern society control children’s daily routines:
-time they get up, eat, go to school, play, sleep etc.
-also control speed at which children ‘grow up’ & define whether a child is too old or young for a responding ugly or behaviour.

Contrasts with Holmes’ findings that among Samoans, ‘too young’ was never an excuse.

Question 29

Form of adult control: Children’s bodies

Answer 29

Adults exercise control over children’s bodies:
-how they sit, walk, wear, ears pierced.
-washed, dressed, cuddled, smacked etc.
Children might be told to not:
-pick nose, suck thumb, play with genitals.

Contrasts with sexual freedoms of children in non industrial cultures such as Trobraind islands.

Question 30

Form of adult control: Children’s access to resources

Answer 30

Limited opportunities to earn money & are dependent:
-labour laws & compulsory schooling mean minimum part time pay.
-even though the state pays child benefit, it goes to the adult.
-pocket money given by adult may depend on behaviour & restrictions on use.

Contrasts with Katz who found Sudanese kids engaged in produced work from age of 3/4.

Question 31

The conflict view: Age patriarchy

Answer 31

Gittins 2002 defines ‘age patriarchy’ as inequalities between adults & children.
-argues there’s adult domination & child dependency.
-leads to father dominating children.

Humphrey & Thiara 2002 found 25% of 200 women they researched, left their abuse partner due to fearing for children’s lives.
:) SUPPORTS Gittins view that patriarchy oppresses both children & women.

Question 32

Age patriarchy : Hockey & James (1993)

Answer 32

Found evidence that children see childhood as oppressive & have 1 of 2 responses:
1. Acting up: acting like adults by (swearing/smoking/drinking etc).
May exaggerate age.
2. Acting down: behaving in was expected of younger children (asking to be carried when you are 6 & resulting in parents demanding independence).

Question 33

Conflict view: Helicopter parenting

Answer 33

-the “improvements in childhood have resulted in HP & children with a lack of resilience.
-HP: parents who hover around children removing obstacles & solving problems.

Question 34

Critics of Child liberationist view: MOP sociologists

Answer 34

-some adult control is justified in grounds that children cannot make rational decisions & cannot safeguard own interests.
-although children remain under supervision, they aren’t powerless.
E.g. 1989 Children act & UN convention of Rights of the child establish principle that children have legal rights to he protected & consulted.
Can emancipate selves.

Question 35

Has the position of childhood improved? the ‘new sociology of childhood’ (Criticism from PLP)

Answer 35

Mayall 2004 argues that MOP & conflict view see children form an ‘adultist viewpoint’.
-see children as ‘socialisation projects for adults to mould, shape & develop for future.

-This theory sees them as active agents in making own childhood rather than adults in the making.
-Argue that we need to understand childhood from different experiences.

Question 36

The future of childhood: UNICEF article

Answer 36

-Experience of childhood judged by; material well being, health, behaviour, environmental safety, & education.
-UK rated 16/29 developed countries for well-being ranking.
-Could be due to children not being in education, healthcare.
-Article suggests future of childhood will cost public finance about £12 billion & poorer children are lost at risk to fall into teen pregnancy or substance abuse.

Question 37

The future of childhood: The disappearance of childhood - Postman (1994)

Answer 37

-“disappearing at a dazzling speed.”
-refers to increased rights for children being the same as adults.
-children committing adult crimes.
-blurring lines between adult & child cultures (clothing).
-declining parental authority.

Question 38

Postman (1994) - Televisions

Answer 38

-Believed cause is fall of print culture & replacement by television culture.
-During Middle ages, people were illit rate & speech was the only skill required for participation.
-Now childhood isn’t innocent & adulthood isn’t mysterious. No division.

Question 39

Postman - Information hierarchy

Answer 39

Information hierarchy: printed word created this, adults who can read & children who cannot.
(Division)
-Adults could keep knowledge about sex, money, violence away from children.
-Television blurs line of dis function by destroying the IH.
-TV does not require special skills to access & information available to adults and children is the same.

Causes adult authority to diminish & child innocence to be replaced with knowledge & cynicism.

Question 40

Evaluation of Disappearance of childhood (Opie 1993)

Answer 40

Argues childhood is not disappearing & a separate children’s culture still exists.
-studied rhymes, songs, games, programmes & they are separate.
-says Postman overemphasises influence of TV.

Question 41

The future of Childhood: Childhood in Postmodernity - Jenks (2005)

Answer 41

Does not believe childhood is disappearing, but believes it is changing.

Question 42

Jenks - Modern society (early 20th century)

Answer 42

-concerned with future of children.
-childhood seen as preparation for individual to become a productive adult in the future.
-children nurtured, protected & controlled by ‘child centred’ families & education system imposing discipline & conformity.
-stable families.

Question 43

Jenks - Postmodern society (late 20-21st century)

Answer 43

-unstable families (divorce).
-parents ‘need’ children due to insecurity they feel in the family.
-parents are over protective if children since it’s the only stable and certain relationship.
-reinforces idea of children being vulnerable & needing protecting resulting in greater surveillance & regulation of children (helicopter parenting).

Question 44

Evaluation of Childhood in Postmodernity

Answer 44

-some evidence that parents see relationships with children as more important than their partners.
-parents concerned with risks their children face.
-but, evidence is from small & unrepresentative studies.

-Jenks is guilty of over generalising, as he makes statements implying children are all in the same positions despite increased diversity today.

Question 45

The future of Childhood: Toxic childhood (Palmer)

Answer 45

-“Every year children become more distract able, impulsive & self obsessed. Less able to learn, enjoy life & thrive socially.”
-Causes are advances in tech, intensive marketing to children (computer games, junk food etc).
-UNICEF 2013 survey 16/29 for well-being, more obesity, more self harm & substance abuse.

Question 46

Toxic childhood - Electronic village

Answer 46

-An electronic village creates more toxicity since children are raised virtually rather than through socialisation & experiences.
-Can cause addiction to consumer culture & the ‘new media’ is becoming the norm.

Question 47

Evaluation of Toxic childhood

Answer 47

-ethnocentric research (not generalisable) as only focuses on westernised culture.
-suggests toxic childhood is a new phenomena but it’s not.
-more info availability has led to paranoid parenting (MOP would say ‘protective’.

Question 48

The future of Childhood: Childhood becoming universal

Answer 48

Western notion spreading around the world.
-campaigns for universal education.
-UN universal rights of child.
-charities focussed on helping ‘street children’ & preventing child labour.
-globalised TV & media.

Question 49

Childhood becoming universal: Implications

Answer 49

-Palmer would argue this would lead to increased toxicity, more mental health issues & self harm.
-worst educational attainment & less socialisation.
-cultural imperialists want the western notion to be widespread as they believe this is best.
(Bolivia children)

Question 50

The future of Childhood: The new sociology of childhood (Mayall)

Answer 50

-sociologists see children as passive puppets & socialisation projects.
-Mayall prefers child liberationist approach,
-acknowledges need to include children in study of childhood (Smart).
-focuses on present tense of childhood from a child’s perspective (Mayall).

Question 51

The new sociology of childhood: The child’s POV - Smart (2011)

Answer 51

Approach seeks to include views & experiences of chukd.
-uses qualitative methods (unstructured interviews) to encourage child to express thoughts.
-do this as they believe children often
lack power in relation to adults.

Question 52

The new sociology of childhood: The child’s POV - Mason & Tipper (2008)

Answer 52

Children actively create own definitions of who is ‘family’ which may include those who aren’t ‘proper’ family members.
(Family friends).

Question 53

The new sociology of childhood: The child’s POV - Smart et al (2001)

Answer 53

Study of divorce.
-children were not passive victims.
-were actively involved in trying to make situation better for everyone.