Childhood
- Created by: alicegrieve
- Created on: 27-02-18 10:25
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- CHILDHOOD
- CHILDHOOD IN THE PAST
- social construction - important characteristics of something such as childhood are created & influenced by the attitudes & actions of society
- Phillippe Aries claims childhood is a recent social invention. in pre-industrial society, childhood didn't exist. children were 'little adults' seen as an economic asset
- social construction of childhood linked to industrialisation, children seen to be innocent & in need of protection
- CHILDREN IN THE 19TH CENTURY
- many factory workers were children under age of 11
- in poor families, parents sometimes forced children to engage in scavenging & street selling, & occasionally used as thieves or prostitutes
- children faced the same legal punishment as adults for crime
- children had low status in the family & were expected to be 'seen & not heard'
- in richer families boys were apprentices & girls were servants (marxist, feminist, functionalist)
- no social protection of kids
- husband head of house, no involvement with children
- CHILDREN IN 20TH CENTRURY
- saw the emergence of a child-centred society
- families had less children so invested more into their children in terms of love, socialisation
- children were seen as being in need of special attention & protection
- CAUSES OF CHILD-CENTREDNESS
- families have got smaller-more individual care & attention
- the welfare state - laws to protect children
- parental fears of 'stranger danger', children travel more with parents
- compulsory education from age 5. better educated
- working hours shortened. more time to spend with kids
- DIFFERENCES IN CHILDHOOD
- child soldiers - conflict in 21 countries, 95,000 child soldiers killed per year
- cheap labour- africa 28% children in work
- social class- richer parents can afford to purchase activities that can enhance childrens personal development, poor children spend more time TV
- gender- girls strictly controlled
- CHILDHOOD DISSAPEARING
- some sociologists argue the distinction between childhood & adulthood is merging to 1
- Postman - process of childhood only take place if separated from adult world, argues there's death of childhood, children growing up too quickly losing innocence, underage sex etc.
- Palmer - increase in modern technology - dont need to ask parents things
- sexualisation of children - average age of sex = 20 for men, 21 for women, to now being 16 for both
- POSITION OF CHILDHOOD WORSENED
- child abuse - 1 in 5 kids subjected to child abuse, most committed by parent
- legal controls - laws protecting kids from engaging in activities that they arent mature enough for e.g. sex. children have less legal rights, form of control
- unhappy children - child proverty 3-7 million in UK
- sibling abuse - 31% kicked etc. by sibling
- CHILDHOOD IN THE PAST
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