Childhood and the Changing Position of Children

Childhood and the Changing Position of Children in Society

This topic explores whether childhood is a social construction — shaped by society rather than biology — and how the experience of being a child has changed over time.

Is Childhood a Social Construction?

Social construction means that the concept of childhood is not fixed or natural but is created and defined by the norms, values and laws of a particular society at a particular time.

Evidence That Childhood is Socially Constructed

Philippe Ariès (1962) — the most important study on this topic — argued that in medieval Europe, childhood did not exist as a separate stage of life:

• Children were seen as "mini-adults" from around age 7
• They wore the same clothes, did the same work and faced the same punishments as adults
• There was no concept of childhood innocence or special protection
• The modern idea of childhood as a distinct, protected phase only emerged from the 17th century onwards, driven by the church, schools and the state

Cross-cultural evidence:

• Punch (2001) — in rural Bolivia, children as young as 5 are expected to work and contribute to the household; childhood there is very different from the UK
• Holmes (1974) — Samoan children were not supervised or protected like Western children; they were given responsibility from an early age
• Wagg (1992) — "Childhood is socially constructed. It is, in other words, what members of particular societies, at particular times and in particular places, say it is"

These examples show that what counts as "childhood" varies hugely between cultures and historical periods — it is not simply a biological stage.

The Modern Western Idea of Childhood

In modern Western societies, childhood is characterised by:

• Children being seen as innocent, vulnerable and in need of protection
• A long period of education (compulsory until 18 in England)
• Legal protections — child labour laws, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), the Children Act (1989, 2004)
• A separate consumer market — children's TV, toys, clothing, food
• Age-based restrictions — children cannot vote, buy alcohol, marry or work full-time

Has the Position of Children Improved? — The March of Progress View

The march of progress view argues that children's lives have dramatically improved over time:

Historical period	Children's experience
Pre-industrial	Children worked in fields, mines and factories from age 5; high infant mortality; no education; physical punishment was normal
Victorian era	Factory Acts began to restrict child labour; compulsory schooling introduced (1880); societies for child protection formed
20th century	Welfare state, free healthcare, child benefit; children's rights legislation; childhood became a protected, extended phase
Today	Children have legal rights, access to education and healthcare; childhood is longer (education to 18); children's voices are increasingly heard

Aries — paradoxically, although he described medieval childhood as different, his work has been used by march-of-progress theorists to show how much childhood has improved since.

Key Improvements

• Health — infant mortality fell from 150 per 1,000 in 1900 to under 4 per 1,000 today
• Education — universal, free and compulsory
• Child protection — laws against abuse, neglect and exploitation
• Children's rights — the UN Convention (1989) gives children rights to protection, provision and participation

The Conflict View — Childhood is Not Improving for All

Critics of the march of progress view argue that the experience of childhood is shaped by inequality:

Social Class

• Poorer children have worse health, lower educational attainment, and fewer opportunities
• Children in the bottom income quintile are more likely to experience overcrowded housing, food insecurity and limited access to technology
• Bernstein (1971) — working-class children are disadvantaged by the restricted speech code used at home vs the elaborated code used in schools

Gender

• Girls and boys are socialised differently — girls may face more restrictions on freedom and independence
• Hillman (1993) — boys are more likely to be allowed out alone, cross roads and cycle on roads than girls of the same age

Ethnicity

• Children from minority ethnic backgrounds may face racism and discrimination
• Brannen (1994) — Asian children may have different experiences of parental control compared to white British children

Global Inequality

• UNICEF — over 160 million children worldwide are involved in child labour
• Millions lack access to education, clean water and healthcare
• In many developing countries, childhood as a protected phase barely exists

The Disappearance of Childhood

Postman (1994) argued that childhood is disappearing because:

• Television and the internet expose children to adult content (violence, sex, news) that was previously hidden
• The boundary between childhood and adulthood is blurring — children dress, speak and behave more like adults
• Adult authority over information has collapsed

Evaluation of Postman:

• Strength: social media has accelerated children's exposure to adult content
• Weakness: legal and institutional protections for children remain strong
• Weakness: Palmer (2006) offers a different argument — children are experiencing a "toxic childhood" (junk food, screen time, commercialisation, pressure) rather than childhood disappearing
• Weakness: Opie and Opie (1969) — children still have their own separate culture (playground games, rhymes, language) that is distinct from adults

The Commercialisation of Childhood

• Children are targeted as consumers — advertising, branding, pester power
• Palmer (2006) — described a "toxic childhood" resulting from screen culture, junk food marketing, testing pressure and the loss of outdoor play
• Children spend an average of 6+ hours per day on screens
• Counter-argument: regulation exists (advertising standards, watershed), and many children benefit from educational technology

Age Patriarchy

Gittins (2004) and other sociologists have argued that children experience age patriarchy — they are controlled and dominated by adults. Children have little real power over their own lives: adults decide where they live, what they learn, when they sleep and what they eat. The "children's rights" movement challenges this but progress is slow.

Exam Technique

A common 12-mark question is: "Discuss how far sociologists agree that the position of children in society has improved." Structure: explain the march of progress view with evidence, then counter with the conflict view (class, gender, ethnicity, global evidence), add Postman or Palmer, and reach a balanced conclusion. Name Aries in almost every childhood answer.