Social Construction Of Childhood

Improved Essays
For this essay our topic of discussion is how social construction of childhood is shaped through social and economic condition. The social construction of childhood often reflects that the childhood is not natural as it is a concept with diverse meanings that take place in different societies. Numerous sociologist claims that children biologically differs from adults however in every society these biological differences have different meanings. The observations that childhood is a social construction are social class, historical changes and cultural variations. The study will analyse from early mid nineteenth (1800s-1990s) centuries perspective and reveal how the role of childhood has changed with the passage of time.
Various children in
…show more content…
When anthropologist viewed regarding children, they were mainly studying them as learners that are inducted into cultural and social world of adults. Thus, an anthropologist Margaret Mead in the year 1930s mentioned about the cross cultural variation under child rearing practices, and often argues shaping about the cultural differences taking places in adult personalities. From past four decades, the anthropologists continued similar line of inquiry in places including Japan, New Guinea, Russia, United States, Africa and …show more content…
It was argued that children needs to study their rights and they must act as social actors instead of being depicted as under adult training or issues for adult social order. Enid Schildkrout, in early critique observed that children hardly entered in social system description and suggested that it is necessary to understand them as ‘children’ instead of next generation of adults (Aries, 1962).
Thus, the new social studies of children as various scholars and researchers call for movement to pay close attention to children as the prime social actors with varied experiences and lives, gaining the momentum in early 1980s and 1990s (Jackson & Scott, 1999). The adult centred framework as critical approach was enhanced from rising criticism of knowledge organized around the interest and outlooks of power. Scholarly attention to people of colour and women helped in inspiring the research that brings out more to understand about childhood (Miller & Mintz, 1990). Critical investigation of childhood, constructionism and age relations such as children and adults were prompted through theoretical approach called social constructionism that involves digging beneath groups that were not given much importance and often lacking actual meaning and

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    We can all relate to this subject as we have all been children at some point in our lives, but how is childhood defined and what factors impact on a person’s childhood? The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that a ‘child’ means ‘every human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier’ Childhood studies focuses on the child and what impacts on children’s lives. When studying childhood there are many factors to observe such as the law, social care, anthropology, education, health, Psychology, medicine and gender.…

    • 994 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Through various events in history, the role and fulfilment a child experiences has transformed due to various circumstances coinciding with the period in history. Childhood is an essential component of an individual, constituting the beliefs and attitudes that shape their future. Some phases in history have affected childhoods more than others, but they all contribute to the overall development in what is defined as a childhood today. This essay argues the significance of the industrial revolution in the development of the concept of a childhood. It outlines the extent to which this period has dictated the way a childhood functions in modern day.…

    • 206 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Anne Haas-Dyson Summary

    • 700 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Epistemological shifts in the study of childhood have contributed to a push for children to be seen and treated as active participants in the research process (Powell and Smith 2009). Greater involvement of children in decisions that affect them speaks directly to Cassell’s (1980) application of the Kantian principle to judgments of ethical adequacy in fieldwork. She suggests Kantian ethics--“that persons be treated at all times as ends in themselves, never merely as means”--provides a more appropriate ethical framework for evaluating fieldwork in settings with children (Cassell 1980:55). To apply the principle of respect for human autonomy in childhood studies, researchers frame their work as research with children, rather than on them. In Brothers and Sisters, Dyson (2003) foregrounds the children’s cultural worlds, the breadth of their textual experiences, and “the depth of their social and symbolic adaptability . . .…

    • 700 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    This book gives me the strongest feeling,and once again deepened my belief that I have always believed in: the early experiences of life - especially family education - have a crucial decisive role in the life trajectory. In fact, after closing the book, I looked at the question with interest: if the two five-year-old Wes Moore in front of me, let me predict which one will grow up later, I can guess Right? On the surface, they are quite similar in their situation: their families are ordinary, supported by mothers and matrilineal relatives, and fathers will not appear in their lives, living in ethnic communities with concentrated ethnic groups, and Baltic and New York. Bronx), the corner is more than idle or to drug trafficking for young men.…

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    When I was pregnant with all my children I would be filled with anticipation with what will they look like and who will they be with they grow up. But the sad part of this anticipation is wishing past every stage of their development to see the adult they will become. I often wonder if my mom thought the same things when she was pregnant with me and I wonder if she likes what she sees now that I am an…

    • 82 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Change in the role of Women during revolutionary war // Women 's Lives in the American Revolutionary Era (before, during and after)------change this theme Examples of women role b4 RW Before the Revolutionary war, women’s role and rights were strongly inferior to men. Men hold all the power to make decisions, however married women lack of legal rights. The law strongly disagreed to recognize that the women’s rights in every aspects, such as political and economics in the eighteenth century. Women cannot officially vote in the congress until 1920.…

    • 1301 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Introduction: Everyone has his or her own opinion on tending too and teaching of children. It is important to understand and to know the reasons why a child behaves in the manner that they do. Sigmund Freud the father of psychology known for his revolutionary ideas in the Western world and his colleagues Piaget, Erikson, Skinner and Vygotsky also have individual philosophies in the assessment of a child’s growth. Considering the different viewpoints of these psychology theorists will help the progress of our own children knowing and understanding cognitive child development.…

    • 1349 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In her book, Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life, Annette Lareau argues out that the influences of social class, as well as race, result in unequal childhoods (Lareau 1). To understand this, it is necessary to infer from the book and assess the manner in which race and social class tend to shape the life of a family. The way in which a family lives can be almost entirely be predetermined by the social class and race of said family. As the scholar demonstrates, each race and social class usually has its own unique way of child upbringing based on circumstances. To affirm this, the different examples that the scholar presents in the book could be used.…

    • 992 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The importance of a child or young person centred approach is to make sure that we meet the needs of all individuals. It is important that all children and young people’s voices are heard and that they can be in control of their education, lives and future goals. It’s also important because it allows all children and young people to fully participate in society as it put them at the centre and helps us to see what they feel is important and that their wishes should be taken into account.…

    • 133 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Annette Lareau is the sociologist who authored the book “Unequal Childhoods”. Lareau is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley, where she graduated with a PhD in Sociology. She has taught Sociology as a professor in multiple universities across the United States, and currently the she is the professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. For her work “Unequal Childhoods” she received the Sociology of Culture Best Book Award and the Best Book Length Contribution to Family Sociology Award from the American Sociological Association, which as of June 2012 she is the current President. “Unequal Childhoods” is Lareau’s naturalistic study of twelve families which were white, black, and interracial, and the ways in which social…

    • 1445 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    “Exploring my Image of the Child” As Dahlberg (1999) explains, understanding and defining the ideal child is a difficult task. In fact, each person has their own definition of the child based on their own worldviews, thus, perhaps making ‘the’ child an abstract concept. This paper is a personal reflection of my worldview, personal experiences, and understanding of a child. I also explore how my new perspective of early childhood education has added to my roles as a Child and Youth Care practitioner working with families and communities.…

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Many parents put in a lot of work to ensure their children’s success. Other parents are less involved in placing their children in several activities to ensure their children’s success. What is the best way to raise children? What are some factors that affect child rearing? Several factors are known to affect how a child is raised, and determining a superior child rearing method is complex, with many pros and cons associated with each method.…

    • 1595 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    After exploring and paralleling the ideas of four theorists, sundry similarities begin to emerge and create an intertwined picture of childhood. Each of the philosophers, imparting their perception of child development with the hope of providing a blueprint of children’s emotional, cognitive, physical and social growth. Launching into the first stage (birth to 1 year), Erickson, Piaget, and Freud collectively suggest oral stimulation as a way for the budding child to connect with the world. Remembering, Infants coming into this world as hopeless mammals that depend on loving adults to care for them. “Attachments are theorized to serve an evolutionary purpose because they increase the likelihood that the caregivers will protect and care for…

    • 3378 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    He stressed that these behaviors play an important role in life of human beings. Especially in children, he explains the importance of cognitive development and how our behaviors affect the outcomes. He explored the relation of social environment on children, how they learn from their social activities and personal developments. He has the idea that every child has two phases of cultural development in his life.…

    • 1341 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    Dentist Research Essay

    • 1874 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Introduction Over the past 30 years, the position of children in society has changed with increasing recognition of children’s rights and the need to involve them in decisions about their education, social and health care. As more weight has been given to the rights and views of the child, there has been a shift from research on children to research with children and the adoption of the concept of child-centered research, which has been summarized as: a) regarding children as competent and reflexive in reporting their own experiences; b) giving children a voice and taking seriously what they say; and c) rather than researching on children, working for and with them1. The majority of research conducted on children is composed of quantitative…

    • 1874 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Brilliant Essays