Has the position of children improved? Flashcards
1
Q
What points/sociologists agree with the march of progress view?
A
- Ariès
- Shorter
- Children today are protected from harm and exploitation by laws
- They have an array of professionals and specialists who cater for their educational, psychological and medical needs
- Better healthcaare and higher standards have decreased the infant mortality rate: 1900- 154/1,000 births. Today: 4/1,000 births
2
Q
What is the evidence of the child-centred family?
A
- Higher living standards and smaller family sizes (1860’s: 5.7 kids, now: 1.83 kids) mean that parents can afford to provide for children’s needs properly
- By the time a child turns 21, they will have cost their parents over £227,000
- Children are no longer to be ‘seen and not heard’, but rather they are the focal point of the family
3
Q
What is Palmer’s (2007,2010) evidence for a toxic childhood?
A
- Rapid technological and cultural changes in the past 25 years have damaged children’s physical, emotional and intellectual developments
- These changes include junk food, computer games…
- These changes have also affected young people’s health and behaviour: the UK youth have above average rates for obesity, self-harm, drug and alcohol abuse…
- UNICEF (2013): The UK is 16th out of 29 for children’s wellbeing
4
Q
What do conflict sociologists argue about the march of progress view?
A
That it is based on a false and idealised image that ignores important inequalities
5
Q
On what 2 grounds so they criticise the march of progress view on?
A
- There are inequalities among children in terms of the opportunities and risks they face: many today remain unprotected and badly cared for
- The inequalities between children and adults are greater than ever: children today experience greater control, oppression and dependency, not greater care and protection
6
Q
What is the evidence for the conflict view that there are inequalities among children?
A
- Not all children share the same status or experiences
Children of different nationalities are likely to experience different childhoods and different life chances: - 90% of the world’ low-weight babies are born in developing countries
There are also gender differences between children: - Hillman (1993): boys are more likely to be allowed to cycle on roads, use buses, go out after dark unaccompanied
- Bonke (1999): girls do more domestic labour, especially in lone-parent households, where they do 5x more housework than boys
Ethnic differences: - Brannen (1994): study of 15-16 y/o found that Asian parents were more likely than other parents to be strict towards their daughters
Class inequalities: - Poor mothers are more likely to have low-weight babies, which is linked to delayed intellectual development
- Children of unskilled manual workers are over 3x more likely to suffer from hyperactivity and 4x more likely to experience conduct disorders than the children of professionals
- Children born into poor families are more likely to die in infancy/childhood..
7
Q
What is the evidence of the conflict view that there are major power inequalities between children and adults?
A
- Firestone and Holt (1979,1974): many of the things that march of progress writers see as care and protection are in fact just new forms of oppression and control
- Eg: ‘protection’ from paid work is a form of inequality, not benefit
Neglect and abuse: - 2013: 43,000 children were subject to child protection plans as they were deemed to be at risk of significant harm, most often from their own parents
- ChildLine: receive over 20,000 calls a year from children saying they’ve been sexually or physically abused
Controls over children’s space: - Shops may display signs such as ‘no schoolchildren’
- Children are allowed to play in some areas and forbidden in others
- Fears about stranger danger mean more children are driven to school: 1971- 86% of primary school children were allowed to travel home from school alone. 2010- this had fallen to 25%
Controls over children’s time: - Adults control children’s daily routines, including when they get up, what they eat, when they sleep
Controls over children’s bodies: - How children sit, walk run, dress, their hairstyles, piercings…
- Children are told they can’t pick their nose, suck their thumb… contrasts with the sexual freedoms of the children of the Trobriand Islanders
Control over children’s access to resources: - Labour laws and compulsory schooling exclude them from all but the most low-paid, part-time work
- Although the state pays child benefit, this goes to the parent not the child
- Pocket money given by parents depends on the behaviour of the child
8
Q
How does Gittins (1998) use the term ‘age patriarchy’ to describe inequalities between children and adults?
A
- Patriarchy means ‘rule by the father’ and the term ‘family’ originally referred to the power of the male head over all other members of the household
- Today, this power asserts itself in the form of violence against both children and women
- Humphreys and Thiara (2002): 1/4 of the 200 women in their study left as they feared for their children’s lives
- As a response to this, children start, according to Hockey and James, ‘acting up’ and start swearing, smoking, drinking alcohol, joy riding…
9
Q
What do critics of the child liberationist view argue?
A
- Some adult control over children’s lives is justified on the grounds that children can’t make rational decisions and so are unable to safeguard their interests themselves
- Although children remain under adult supervision, they aren’t as powerless as the child liberationists claim
10
Q
How does the ‘new sociology of childhood’ approach see children?
A
It sees children as active agents who play a major part in creating their own childhoods
11
Q
What studies support Mayall’s view that we must focus on the present tense of childhood?
A
- Mason and Tipper (2008): children create their own definitions of family with who they are close with
- Smart et al (2001): study of divorce showed that children aren’t the victims but they try their best to help the situation
- Use unstructured interviews
