childhood

Question 1

what does Jane Pilcher (1995) note is the most important feature of the modern idea of childhood?

Answer 1

separateness
childhood is a clear and distinct life stage

Question 2

how is the separateness of childhood emphasised?

Answer 2

laws regulating what children are allowed, required or forbidden
dress, entertainment, goods and services

Question 3

who notes that separateness is the most important feature of the modern idea of childhood?

Answer 3

Jane Pilcher

Question 4

what is the ‘golden age’ of childhood?

Answer 4

happiness and innocence
- means children are seen as vulnerable and in need of protection from the dangers of the adult world

Question 5

what spheres do children largely live in?

Answer 5

family and education

Question 6

what does Stephen Wagg say?

Answer 6

childhood is socially constructed
there is no single universal childhood

Question 7

what does Stephen Wagg’s view on childhood mean?

Answer 7

while all humans go through the same stages of physical development, different cultures construct or define this differently

Question 8

what does Ruth Benedict argue?

Answer 8

children in simpler, non-industrial societies are generally treated differently from there modern western counter parts in three ways:
1.they take responsibility at an early age
2.less value is placed on children showing obedience to adult authority
3.children’s sexual behaviour is often viewed differently

Question 9

how do Punch and Holmes validate Benedict’s identification that some children
1. take responsibility at an early age?

Answer 9

Punch found that in Bolivia, once children are about 5, they are expected to take work responsibilities

Holmes found in a village ‘too young’ was never given as an excuse not to do something

Question 10

what sociologists validate Benedict’s identification that some children
1. take responsibility at an early age?

Answer 10

Punch and Holmes

Question 11

what sociologists validate Benedict’s identification that in some places
2.less value is placed on children showing obedience to adult authority

Answer 11

Firth

Question 12

how does Firth validate Benedict’s identification that some places
2.less value is placed on children showing obedience to adult authority

Answer 12

among the Tikopia, doing as you are told is regarded as a concession to be granted by the child, not a right to be expected

Question 13

complete the sentence:
Benedict also argues that in many non industrial cultures there is less of a…

Answer 13

dividing line between the behaviour expected of children and that expected of adults

Question 14

explain the globalisation of western childhood

Answer 14

International humanitarian and welfare agencies have exported and imposed on the rest of the world, western norms of which childhood should be

Question 15

Explain historical differences in childhood

Answer 15

The position of children differs overtime, as well as between societies

Question 16

what does historian Aries argue?

Answer 16

in the middle ages ‘the idea of childhood did not exist’
- children were effectively mini adults

Question 17

what does Aries use to reinforce his argument?

Answer 17

artwork
children were just painted on a smaller scale

Question 18

describe the modern cult of childhood?

Answer 18

the world is now obsessed with childhood

Question 19

what developments according to Aries culminate in the modern cult of childhood?

Answer 19

• schools came to specialise purely in the education of the young
• growing distinction of children and adult clothing
• handbooks on childbearing are widely available

Question 20

how might sociologists criticise Aries?

Answer 20

In the Middle Ages society, simply had a different notion of childhood from today’s

Question 21

why is Aries contribution valuable?

Answer 21

It shows that is childhood is socially constructed

Question 22

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children?
1. laws..

Answer 22

• laws restricting child labour and excluding children from paid work
• laws and policies that apply specifically to children (eg minimum ages)

Question 23

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children?
2. the introduction of..

Answer 23

compulsory schooling

Question 24

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children?
3. child..

Answer 24

protection and welfare legislation

Question 25

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children? 4. the growth of..

Answer 25

the idea of children's rights - eg UN convention on the the Rights of the Child

Question 26

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children? 5. declining..

Answer 26

family size and lower infant mortality

Question 27

what has declining family size and lower infant mortality meant?

Answer 27

Encouraged parents, to make greater financial and emotional investment in the fewer children that they now have

Question 28

what reasons are there for the changes in the position of children? 6. children's..

Answer 28

childrens development became the subject of medical knowledge

Question 29

what does Postman argue is the future of childhood?

Answer 29

'disappearing at a dazzling speed'

Question 30

what does Postman argue is the cause first of the emergence of childhood and now it's disappearance?

Answer 30

The rise and fall of print culture and its replacement by television culture

Question 31

Describe, Postman's identification of the information hierarchy

Answer 31

Printed word created an information hierarchy with a sharp division between adults who can read and children, who cannot

Question 32

What does television replace ignorance and innocence of childhood with?

Answer 32

Knowledge and cynicism

Question 33

what sociologist evaluated Postman's theory that childhood is disappearing?

Answer 33

Iona Opie

Question 34

how does Iona Opie evaluate Postman's theory that childhood is disappearing?

Answer 34

based on lifetime research into children's unsupervised games, rhymes and songs she argues that there is strong evidence of continued existence separate culture over many years

Question 35

what does Jenk's believe about childhood in post modernity?

Answer 35

that childhood is changing rather that disappearing

Question 36

describe Jenk's view that childhood is changing rather that disappearing?

Answer 36

childhood continues to be a separate status

Question 37

what change does Jenk's argue childhood is going through as society moves from modernity, to post modernity?

Answer 37

in modern society adult relationships were more stable however in post modernity, they're more unstable children become more important as a source of adults identity and stability

Question 38

evaluate Jenk's arguments?

Answer 38

He makes sweeping statements that imply all children are in the same position

Question 39

what is the march of progress view of childhood?

Answer 39

the position of childhood is improving and today is better than ever before

Question 40

what does Mause say about how the position of children has improved?

Answer 40

the history of childhood is a nightmare from which we have only recently begun to awaken

Question 41

describe the child centred family

Answer 41

higher living standards and small family sizes mean that parents can afford to provide for children's needs properly

Question 42

Explain the march of progress argument for the family, becoming child-centred

Answer 42

Children are no longer to be seen, and not Heard as they were in Victorian times. Instead, they are now the focal point of family.

Question 43

How can the improving position of children be evaluated?

Answer 43

Toxic childhood

Question 44

what is sociologist argued that children in the UK today are experiencing toxic childhood?

Answer 44

Sue Palmer

Question 45

explain the concept of toxic childhood

Answer 45

Rapper, technological and cultural changes in the last 25 years have damaged children's physical emotional an intellectual development eg. junk food, computer games

Question 46

Describe the concerns have been expressed about young peoples health and behaviour

Answer 46

UK youth have a above average rate in international league tables for obesity, self harm, drug and alcohol abuse

Question 47

What does Lloyd De Mause say about the history of childhood?

Answer 47

'the history of childhood is a nightmare from which we have only recently begun to awaken'

Question 48

what is the difference between birth rates in the 1860s to more recent years (2014)?

Answer 48

- 1860s = 5.7 births per woman - 2014 = 1.83 births per woman

Question 49

Which sociologists are included in the conflict view of childhood?

Answer 49

marxists and feminists

Question 50

Generally, how do conflict sociologists critisise the march of progress view of modern childhood?

Answer 50

MoP is based on a false and idealised image that ignores important inequalities

Question 51

Conflict theorists criticise the MoP view on two grounds which are:

Answer 51

1. there are inequalities among children - in terms of the opportunities and risks they face 2. the inequalities between children and adults are greater than ever - children experience greater control, oppression and dependency - not care or protection

Question 52

What % of the worlds low birth-weight babies are born in developing countries?

Answer 52

90%

Question 53

describe current inequalities amongst children

Answer 53

- nationality - gender - ethnic - class

Question 54

What sociologists looked at gender differences among children?

Answer 54

Mayer Hillman (1993) and Jens Bonke (1999)

Question 55

What did Mayer Hillman (1993) find about gendered differences among children?

Answer 55

boys are more likely to be allowed to cross or cycle on roads, use buses, and go out unaccompanied after dark

Question 56

What did Jens Bonke (1999) find about gendered differences among children?

Answer 56

Girls do more domestic labour - especially in lone parent families where they do 5 times more housework than boys

Question 57

Which sociologists investigated ethnic differences among children?

Answer 57

Julia Brannen (1994) and Ghazala Bhatti (1999)

Question 58

What did Julia Brannen find about ethinic differences among children?

Answer 58

- study of 15-16 year olds - found that Asian parents were more likely to be stricter on their daughters

Question 59

What did Ghazala Bhatti (1999) find about ethinic differences among children?

Answer 59

izzat (family honour) could be a restriction, particularly for the behaviour of girls

Question 60

What important class inequalities between children?

Answer 60

- poor mothers = more likely to have low birth-weight babies - children of unskilled manual workers = 3 times more likely to suffer from hyperactivity than of professionals - children born into poor families are more likely to die in infancy or childhood, to suffer longstanding illness, to be shorter in height, to fall behind in school, to be placed on the child protection register

Question 61

Which sociologists investigate inequalities between chilren and adults?

Answer 61

Firestone (1979) and John Holt (1974)

Question 62

What did Firestone (1979) and John Holt (1974) argue?

Answer 62

things Mop writers see as care and protection are infact just new forms of opression and control

Question 63

What does Firestone argue about "protection" from paid work?

Answer 63

its not a benefit to children but infact a form of inequality

Question 64

Why does Firestone argue that 'protection' from paid work is a form of inequality to children?

Answer 64

it is a way of forcibly segregating children, making them more dependant, powerless and subject to adult control

Question 65

define 'child liberationism'

Answer 65

the view taken by Firestone and Holt - the need to free children from adult control

Question 66

what forms can adult control take?

Answer 66

- neglect and abuse - control over childrens spaces - control over childrens time - control over childrens bodies - control over childrens acess to resources

Question 67

How many children were subject to child protection plans in 2013? ## Footnote Adult control - neglect and abuse

Answer 67

43,000

Question 68

How many calls do childline recieve a year from children claiming to be sexually or physically abused? ## Footnote neglect and abuse

Answer 68

20,000

Question 69

What do the statistics about neglect and abuse suggest about family life?

Answer 69

there is a 'dark side'

Question 70

what are some examples of control over childrens spaces