International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention (IJHSSI) is an international journal intended for professionals and researchers in all fields of Humanities and Social Science. IJHSSI publishes research articles and reviews within the whole field Humanities and Social Science, new teaching methods, assessment, validation and the impact of new technologies and it will continue to provide information on the latest trends and developments in this ever-expanding subject. The publications of papers are selected through double peer reviewed to ensure originality, relevance, and readability. The articles published in our journal can be accessed online.
How Does the Level of Homesickness Experienced by Students at Jacobs Universi...Jonathan Laetsch
This research report aims to identify the various factors that contribute to both level of social integration and level of homesickness experienced by Students of Jacobs University Bremen in an effort to clarify the similarities and differences between the two factors.
Building a pedagogy of engagement for students in povertyJonathan Dunnemann
The only surefire way to eliminate the achievement gap is to eradicate can still take many research-proven steps to foster equality of opportunity in education.
EFFECT OF PARENTS’ INFLUENCE ON SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR AMONG STUDENTS IN SECONDAR...paperpublications3
Abstract:Increased sexual liberty and early initiation of adolescents into sexual activities have led to irresponsible and risky sexual behaviors among the adolescents. However, regardless of the availability of various sources of information about sexuality and reproduction, the adolescents are yet to adopt safe sexual behaviors. This has raised questions about the effects of parents on sexual behaviors among adolescent students. This study sought to investigate the effects parents' influence on the sexual behaviors among students in secondary schools in Nyahururu Division, Laikipia County. This study adopted an ex post facto research design. A random sample, of 338 respondents, was chosen from the seven randomly selected schools. Data was collected through administration of a structured questionnaire to the selected respondents. The collected data was then processed and analyzed descriptively using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 17 for Windows. The content validity of the research instrument was established by ascertaining that it contained information that answered the research objectives. The instrument was piloted to ensure reliability and it gave a reliability coefficient of 0.82. The study finding indicated that most parents encouraged their adolescent children to have good sexual behaviors. They, however, lacked effective communication skills to pass their good intentions to their adolescent children and thus making their discussions on sexual matters boring and uninteresting. The study recommends the need for parents to adopt effective communication skills that could enable them pass their good sexual intentions to their adolescent children.
Keywords:Parental Influence, Sexual behaviors, Sexual problems, Adolescent, Sex related information, Parent.
A new theory of how children are using our classrooms in the US to acculturate into society. The models currently in use in teacher preparation may not be focused on the true needs of the learners.
International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention (IJHSSI) is an international journal intended for professionals and researchers in all fields of Humanities and Social Science. IJHSSI publishes research articles and reviews within the whole field Humanities and Social Science, new teaching methods, assessment, validation and the impact of new technologies and it will continue to provide information on the latest trends and developments in this ever-expanding subject. The publications of papers are selected through double peer reviewed to ensure originality, relevance, and readability. The articles published in our journal can be accessed online.
From play to knowledge By Lucy Atkinson.pdfvideosplay360
This article relates my experiences using playful child-centred research techniques whilst
undertaking research with Congolese refugee children in Zambia. Such techniques generate
rich and varied information, and often in unexpected ways. They also create a format whereby
the researcher and the children can interact and form relationships outside the usual social
relationships of adult and child, researcher and informant. Given play’s classification as
enjoyable, social and educational, play as an aspect of fieldwork can be involved in a range of
different ways of gathering and presenting anthropological knowledge. Through play we build
different kinds of relationships, experience different kinds of interaction and therefore gather
different kinds of information. Play in fieldwork therefore leads to different kinds of
knowledge, but it also leads to knowledge presented in different forms—visual, embodied
performative and experiential. Given the prioritisation of written forms in academia, the way
in which these forms of representation can be used in the presentation of knowledge is not
straightforward. The challenge to anthropology is how these different forms of knowledge are
valued and translated.
How Does the Level of Homesickness Experienced by Students at Jacobs Universi...Jonathan Laetsch
This research report aims to identify the various factors that contribute to both level of social integration and level of homesickness experienced by Students of Jacobs University Bremen in an effort to clarify the similarities and differences between the two factors.
Building a pedagogy of engagement for students in povertyJonathan Dunnemann
The only surefire way to eliminate the achievement gap is to eradicate can still take many research-proven steps to foster equality of opportunity in education.
EFFECT OF PARENTS’ INFLUENCE ON SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR AMONG STUDENTS IN SECONDAR...paperpublications3
Abstract:Increased sexual liberty and early initiation of adolescents into sexual activities have led to irresponsible and risky sexual behaviors among the adolescents. However, regardless of the availability of various sources of information about sexuality and reproduction, the adolescents are yet to adopt safe sexual behaviors. This has raised questions about the effects of parents on sexual behaviors among adolescent students. This study sought to investigate the effects parents' influence on the sexual behaviors among students in secondary schools in Nyahururu Division, Laikipia County. This study adopted an ex post facto research design. A random sample, of 338 respondents, was chosen from the seven randomly selected schools. Data was collected through administration of a structured questionnaire to the selected respondents. The collected data was then processed and analyzed descriptively using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 17 for Windows. The content validity of the research instrument was established by ascertaining that it contained information that answered the research objectives. The instrument was piloted to ensure reliability and it gave a reliability coefficient of 0.82. The study finding indicated that most parents encouraged their adolescent children to have good sexual behaviors. They, however, lacked effective communication skills to pass their good intentions to their adolescent children and thus making their discussions on sexual matters boring and uninteresting. The study recommends the need for parents to adopt effective communication skills that could enable them pass their good sexual intentions to their adolescent children.
Keywords:Parental Influence, Sexual behaviors, Sexual problems, Adolescent, Sex related information, Parent.
A new theory of how children are using our classrooms in the US to acculturate into society. The models currently in use in teacher preparation may not be focused on the true needs of the learners.
International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention (IJHSSI) is an international journal intended for professionals and researchers in all fields of Humanities and Social Science. IJHSSI publishes research articles and reviews within the whole field Humanities and Social Science, new teaching methods, assessment, validation and the impact of new technologies and it will continue to provide information on the latest trends and developments in this ever-expanding subject. The publications of papers are selected through double peer reviewed to ensure originality, relevance, and readability. The articles published in our journal can be accessed online.
From play to knowledge By Lucy Atkinson.pdfvideosplay360
This article relates my experiences using playful child-centred research techniques whilst
undertaking research with Congolese refugee children in Zambia. Such techniques generate
rich and varied information, and often in unexpected ways. They also create a format whereby
the researcher and the children can interact and form relationships outside the usual social
relationships of adult and child, researcher and informant. Given play’s classification as
enjoyable, social and educational, play as an aspect of fieldwork can be involved in a range of
different ways of gathering and presenting anthropological knowledge. Through play we build
different kinds of relationships, experience different kinds of interaction and therefore gather
different kinds of information. Play in fieldwork therefore leads to different kinds of
knowledge, but it also leads to knowledge presented in different forms—visual, embodied
performative and experiential. Given the prioritisation of written forms in academia, the way
in which these forms of representation can be used in the presentation of knowledge is not
straightforward. The challenge to anthropology is how these different forms of knowledge are
valued and translated.
What Is This “Home Sweet Home”: A Course-Based Qualitative Exploration of the...AJHSSR Journal
ABSTRACT: This course-based research study explores the meaning of the concept of home for child and
youth care students. Data collection strategies included a conversational open-ended interview and an arts-based
activity. The open-ended interviews were conducted via the Zoom and Google Meet communication
platforms.A thematic analysis resulted in the identification of four main themes: (a) important people in my life,
(b) safety and security, (c) comfortable places, and (d) an authentic space.
KEYWORDS: child and youth care, course-based research, home, qualitative
httpjcc.sagepub.comPsychology Journal of Cross-Cultur.docxwellesleyterresa
http://jcc.sagepub.com
Psychology
Journal of Cross-Cultural
DOI: 10.1177/0022022194252002
1994; 25; 181 Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
Deborah L. Best, Amy S. House, Anne E. Barnard and Brenda S. Spicker
Effects of Gender and Culture
Parent-Child Interactions in France, Germany, and Italy: The
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http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/pp/01650254.html
Perspectives on gender development
Eleanor E. Maccoby
Stanford University, California, USA
Two traditional perspectives on gender development—the socialisation and cognitive perspectives—
are reviewed. It is noted that although they deal quite well with individual differences within ...
In this module, we take up the less obvious, but no less important.docxbradburgess22840
In this module, we take up the less obvious, but no less important, issue of continuity vs. discontinuity in human development. Is human development an unbroken linear process of growth and "progress" through the normal ages and stages of human life? Or, are individual human lives best characterized as unique and unpredictable stories, full of twists, turns, and transformations?
Readings
· Cook, W. & Herzman, R. St. Augustine, The Confessions. The Teaching Company. Course #6627. Lectures 13-24.
· Claverley, J. & Philips, D.C. (1986). Reread Ch. 6 "The Ages of Man: From Genesis to Piaget"
· Tolstoy, Leo. (1886). The Death of Ivan Ilych. Link:http://www.geocities.com/short_stories_page/tolstoydeath.html
or try: http://www.classicallibrary.org/tolstoy/ivan/index.htm
· Freud, S. Introductory Lectures, Lecture XX. Link: http://chnm.gmu.edu/courses/honors130/freud3.html
· M7 - Historical Antecedents I - Continuity
· The child is father to the man -- William Wordsworth
· One of the most powerful aspects of scientific theories is that they allow the prediction of future events based on the collection and interpretation of current data. For example, before the invention of the microscope and the discovery of microbes in the 17th and 18th centuries, many diseases and infections were regarded as unpredictable and mysterious afflictions that killed millions arbitrarily. The discovery of bacteria and other micro-organisms and the identification of their causal role in infection and disease represented a major breakthrough in modern medical science that enabled the prediction and prevention of many illnesses through such simple measures as the sterilization of surgical instruments with heat and the avoidance of contaminated water. This new model of scientific Investigation based on observation, formulation of hypotheses, experimental testing, and finally prediction and the possibility of some degree of control through evidence based intervention promised a powerful new approach to the study of human development and behavior. The role of the microscope in the new medical science is noteworthy. It contributed a crucial new element to the thinking of those scholars who turned their attention to the development of human beings. For just as the actual cause of disease was found to be beyond direct observation, and thus hidden, so too did the new developmentalists come to assume the existence of hidden or inner mechanisms and processes responsible for the appearance of various traits and behaviors and their developmental unfolding.
The first Mozart effect publication showed participants spatial
intelligence scores improved by 8-9 points, by far the largest
increase reported in literature. A meta-analysis of Mozart effect
research showed an increase of 1.4 general IQ points between
participants listening to Mozart or silence (Chabris 1999). This
have led some to suggest playing Mozart to unborn children in utero.
· The child study movement in the 19th cent.
The Sociology of the Life Course 2- childhoodbrunogiegerich
This series of presentations are an accompaniment to terrific textbook 'Sociology, 7th edition' by Giddens and Sutton (2013). There is a very strong focus on visuals, with many additional short activities designed to foster interaction between teachers and students.
The text from Giddens and Sutton is usually paraphrased and reworded to aid the comprehension of students, particularity those of lower language ability than Giddens and Sutton had in mind.
The sociology of the age and the life course is the perfect embodiment of contemporary sociology as a whole, and a branch of the discipline with direct relevance to every individual in late-modern capitalist industrial societies.
Sociology is the study of how the structure of any particular society largely dictates how individuals must live; the analysis of the plight of the modern individual in a rapidly changing world. By using this frame of reference, we often reveal social phenomena previously regarded as "natural" and eternal as -in actual fact- "social constructions" that are completely dependent on the socio-historical era for their own existence.
The sociology of the life course looks at how the meanings attached to something as fundamental as a "stage of life" (e.g. childhood) change across time and space; in other words, in different historical eras and -still today- in different places around this complex and diverse planet, the expectations attached to -say- being pre-teen, a teenager, or someone over the age of 50 are products of capitalist, industrial modernity and therefore very, very recent developments in our 800,000 year human history.
This series begins with an introduction to the different aspects of ageing, with an emphasis on the development of social self (looking-glass self), which is something all humans do regardless of time and space; it is part of the psychological process of growing up in all societies.
We then establish what social ageing is; the fundamentals of the sociology of ageing.
Later chapters of the series analyze the different stages of life, in turn, in socio-historical perspective; beginning with what we would today call "childhood" (pre-teen), before looking at "youth", "young adulthood", "mature adulthood" and finally "later life".
A Unified Theory of Development A Dialectic Integration of Na.docxdaniahendric
A Unified Theory of Development: A Dialectic Integration of Nature
and Nurture
Arnold Sameroff
University of Michigan
The understanding of nature and nurture within developmental science has evolved with alternating ascen-
dance of one or the other as primary explanations for individual differences in life course trajectories of suc-
cess or failure. A dialectical perspective emphasizing the interconnectedness of individual and context is
suggested to interpret the evolution of developmental science in similar terms to those necessary to explain
the development of individual children. A unified theory of development is proposed to integrate personal
change, context, regulation, and representational models of development.
The attention of philosophers and then scientists to
human development has always begun with a con-
cern that children should grow up to be good citi-
zens who would contribute to society through
diligent labor, moral family life, civil obedience,
and, more recently, to be happy while making these
contributions. The motivation for these concerns
was that there were many adults who were not.
Although attention was paid to the socialization
and education of children, it was ultimately in the
service of improving adult performance. The socie-
tal concern has always had a life-span perspective.
Without healthy, productive adults no culture
could continue to be successful. This concern
continues to be a major motivator for society to
support child development research. Although the
intellectual interests of contemporary develop-
mental researchers range widely in cognitive and
social–emotional domains, the political justification
for supporting such studies is that they will lead to
the understanding and ultimate prevention of
behavioral problems that are costly to society.
With these motivations and supports there have
been major advances in our understanding of the
intellectual, emotional, and social behavior of
children, adolescents, and adults. Moreover these
understandings have increasingly involved multi-
level processes cutting across disciplinary bound-
aries in the social and natural sciences. This
progress has forced conceptual reorientations as
earlier unidirectional views that biological or social
circumstance controlled individual behavior are
becoming multidirectional perspectives where indi-
vidual behavior reciprocally changes both biologi-
cal and social circumstance.
The models we use to understand how individ-
uals change over time have increased in complex-
ity from linear to interactive to transactive to
multilevel dynamic systems. Was this progression
in complexity an expression of empirical advances
in our developmental research or is it related to
more general progressions in the history of science
as a whole? Several years ago during a discussion
of a need for a critical social history of develop-
mental psychology by a number of distinguished
scientists (Bronfenbrenner, Kessel, Kessen, &
White, 198 ...
Military Commissions details LtCol Thomas Jasper as Detailed Defense CounselThomas (Tom) Jasper
Military Commissions Trial Judiciary, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Notice of the Chief Defense Counsel's detailing of LtCol Thomas F. Jasper, Jr. USMC, as Detailed Defense Counsel for Abd Al Hadi Al-Iraqi on 6 August 2014 in the case of United States v. Hadi al Iraqi (10026)
Synopsis On Annual General Meeting/Extra Ordinary General Meeting With Ordinary And Special Businesses And Ordinary And Special Resolutions with Companies (Postal Ballot) Regulations, 2018
How to Obtain Permanent Residency in the NetherlandsBridgeWest.eu
You can rely on our assistance if you are ready to apply for permanent residency. Find out more at: https://immigration-netherlands.com/obtain-a-permanent-residence-permit-in-the-netherlands/.
Car Accident Injury Do I Have a Case....Knowyourright
Every year, thousands of Minnesotans are injured in car accidents. These injuries can be severe – even life-changing. Under Minnesota law, you can pursue compensation through a personal injury lawsuit.
NATURE, ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNATIONAL LAW.pptxanvithaav
These slides helps the student of international law to understand what is the nature of international law? and how international law was originated and developed?.
The slides was well structured along with the highlighted points for better understanding .
ALL EYES ON RAFAH BUT WHY Explain more.pdf46adnanshahzad
All eyes on Rafah: But why?. The Rafah border crossing, a crucial point between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, often finds itself at the center of global attention. As we explore the significance of Rafah, we’ll uncover why all eyes are on Rafah and the complexities surrounding this pivotal region.
INTRODUCTION
What makes Rafah so significant that it captures global attention? The phrase ‘All eyes are on Rafah’ resonates not just with those in the region but with people worldwide who recognize its strategic, humanitarian, and political importance. In this guide, we will delve into the factors that make Rafah a focal point for international interest, examining its historical context, humanitarian challenges, and political dimensions.
In 2020, the Ministry of Home Affairs established a committee led by Prof. (Dr.) Ranbir Singh, former Vice Chancellor of National Law University (NLU), Delhi. This committee was tasked with reviewing the three codes of criminal law. The primary objective of the committee was to propose comprehensive reforms to the country’s criminal laws in a manner that is both principled and effective.
The committee’s focus was on ensuring the safety and security of individuals, communities, and the nation as a whole. Throughout its deliberations, the committee aimed to uphold constitutional values such as justice, dignity, and the intrinsic value of each individual. Their goal was to recommend amendments to the criminal laws that align with these values and priorities.
Subsequently, in February, the committee successfully submitted its recommendations regarding amendments to the criminal law. These recommendations are intended to serve as a foundation for enhancing the current legal framework, promoting safety and security, and upholding the constitutional principles of justice, dignity, and the inherent worth of every individual.
1. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention
ISSN (Online): 2319 – 7722, ISSN (Print): 2319 – 7714
www.ijhssi.org Volume 3 Issue 5ǁ May. 2014 ǁ PP.10-14
www.ijhssi.org 10 | Page
Children’s Construction of National Identity: “New” Social
Studies of Childhood Paradigm
Charu Sharma
Assistant Professor, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
ABSTRACT : The paper critically reviews the emerging paradigm of “new” sociology of childhood as
opposed to the dominant developmental psychology perspective in the background of construction of national
identity by children. The development of national identity can be considered as a significant theme to be
investigated with children as they form preliminary understanding of their nation quite early in life, through
various direct and indirect sources. Moreover, the theme of nation may manifest in the form of nationality,
nationalism, national attitudes, national identity and even citizenship, depending upon the socio-cultural context
of a particular study, with children. In the paper, the researches on children’s conceptualisation on the theme of
nation have been examined in a critical and comprehensive manner. The theoretical orientation that has
evolved from the research studies on national identity highlights “new” social studies of childhood paradigm. It
further explores how children’s understanding of nation gradually develops and changes through the course of
childhood, keeping their diverse socio-cultural contexts into consideration.
KEYWORDS :Childhood, Constructivism, Nation, National Identity, “New” Social Studies of Childhood
I. INTRODUCTION
The dominance of developmental psychology in the discourse of early and middle childhood research
is quite evident from the vast research literature available in this domain. However, the perspective of
developmental psychology has been increasingly criticized by sociologists of childhood for universalizing
childhood. These earlier developmental studies were situated in relatively static European societies at a time
prior to the profound socio-cultural changes which emerged from the emigrational shifts of recent decades,
media expansion, and massive globalization. Some researchers note that there is a historical tendency to present
findings of studies conducted in Western Europe and North America as though they applied universally
(Scourfield et al, 2006). Most importantly, conventional developmental psychology has been accused of seeing
children as human becomings not beings, and therefore not worthy of study in their own right. This effectively
denies them all agency to articulate their own experiences (James & Prout, 1997). This developmental
psychology based studies tend to ignore children‟s own worldview because of its strict focus on cognition--
narrowly defined-- rules out taking seriously the subjective dimensions of childhood that in other traditions,
such as the “new” sociology of childhood, are seen as constitutive of children‟s identity. Developmental
research on children‟s identity formation explores only the “what” of children‟s knowledge, and neither the
“why” nor “how”. By focusing on stages of development, researchers in this area are concerned primarily about
whether children comprehend a concept (hence showing that they have „successfully‟ transitioned from one
state of understanding to the next) rather than about how children have made that transition (Scourfield et al,
2006). Another critique of developmental psychology that is often raised is its downplaying of the role of
exogenous influences- such as the family, media or schools in the process of children‟s identity formation.
Many scholars (George, 2007; Madan, 2003)express discomfort with this line of reasoning is its almost
complete disregard of the role of education.
The “new” social studies of childhood perspective have emerged during the last decade of twentieth
century in response to the weaknesses of previous paradigms while accounting for children‟s development. This
perspective, sometimes also known as the “new” sociology of childhood stands strikingly apart from the
conventional sociological tradition of understanding children pioneered by classical sociologists in the first half
of the twentieth century. The “new” social studies of childhood suggest that children are competent and active
participants in all kinds of social scenarios. Such a perspective acknowledges children as developing beings, but
at the same time validates their agency in their everyday lives. (James, Jenks & Prout, 1998).
2. Children’s Construction Of National Identity…
www.ijhssi.org 11 | Page
II. EMERGENCE OF “NEW” SOCIAL STUDIES OF CHILDHOOD PARADIGM
The dominance of socialisation theory in the field of childhood researches initially meant that children
were seen as incompetent and incomplete, as „adults in the making rather than children in the state of being‟
(Brannen & O‟Brien, 1995), it was the forces of socialisation – the family and school – which received greater
attention with „little or no time‟ being given to children themselves (James et al. 1998). The intensity of recent
work means that James, Jenks and Prout (1998) set out a paradigm for the “new” social studies of childhood.
The epistemological break for the “new” social studies of childhood was the understanding of the child as
„being‟ - the child is conceived of as a person, a status, a course of action, a set of needs, rights or differences –
in sum, as a social actor. The new phenomenon, the „being‟ child, must be understood in its own right. It should
not have to be approached from an assumed shortfall of competence, reason or significance. This change in
terminology – from the sociology of childhood (James & Prout, 1997) to the “new” social studies of childhood
(James et al., 1998) – is important, reflecting a growing cross-fertilisation of ideas between researchers in a
variety of social science disciplines. These linkages have contributed to a growing interest within geography in
children as social actors (Holloway and Valentine, 2000), and an emerging interest in sociology in the spatiality
of childhood (James et al, 1998).The rapid changes in the ways by which sociologists think about children, and
growing cross-fertilisation of ideas between researchers in a variety of social science disciplines was traced by
Holloway and Vallentine (2000). Their study built upon these developments by exploring what three inter-
related ways of thinking about spatiality might contribute to the “new” social studies of childhood. First, these
scholars argued that working with progressive sense of place, in which global and local are understood to be
embedded within one another rather than as dichotomous categories. It could result in productive cross-linkages
between currently separated „global‟ and „local‟ studies, and thus produce more fully contextualised studies of
childhood. Second, by building upon existing interests in the ways in which children‟s identities and lives are
made and remade through the sites of everyday life. In particular, they argued that schools and homes need to be
thought of not as bounded spaces, but as porous ones produced through their webs of connectedness with wider
societies which inform socio-spatial practices within those spaces.
Moreover, Holloway and Vallentine (2000) suggested that in highlighting the spatial disciplining of the
school and the control of parents in the home, children‟s agency, both in terms of their ability to resist adult
control and their potential to make strategic alliances with adults to avoid domination by other children, should
be given further attention by researchers in the “new” social studies of childhood. Finally, they demonstrated
how ideas about childhood inform our understanding of particular spaces, showing that the idea that children‟s
place in the home and that they are either at risk, or need to be considered risky, within public space is
dependent upon ideas of children as angels (innocent and lacking competence) and less often, as devils
(unsocialised beings whose activities need to be controlled). These spatial discourses are important as they
inform socio-spatial practices in these sites, socio-spatial practices which then reinforce, or occasionally
challenge, our understanding of childhood. The material and ideological consequences of this dialectical relation
between our spatialised ideas of childhood and the socio-spatial practices surrounding childhood warrant further
academic attention (Holloway & Vallentine 2000).
III. CHILDREN’S DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL IDENTITY
There have been few previous investigations of children‟s responses to questions of national identity,
and most of these researches have had as their subtext a concern with otherness, difference and the potential for
racist attitudes being revealed. A cross-national comparison of self-identification was carried out with German
children and English children as participants, and relied on the contrasting profiles generated by the children‟s
responses in terms of self-perception. The British children were revealed as more confident of being well
received outside their own country than their German counterparts, whereas the children of Turkish guest
workers in Germany had a significantly lower estimation of their positive reception in places other than Turkey.
In this study, national identification emerged from the different profiles rather than being an explicit focus of the
research. A series of studies in the United Kingdom was carried out by Carrington and Short (1995, 1998) which
focused explicitly on children‟s sense of national identity and showed this sense to develop in complexity as the
children grow older. These researchers adopted a three-part construct of national identity which first relies on
the existence of a distinctive group of people defined in terms of tangible characteristics such as language or
religion or other cultural practices; second, the assumption that such groups occupy or lay claim to a distinctive
territory or place; and third that a „mystical bond‟ is forged between people and place to form an immutable
whole: the nation. Among the more significant of their findings was that children across the studies appeared
relatively uninterested in the question of „being British‟, and that only rarely were responses encountered that
carried a potentially racist overtone.
3. Children’s Construction Of National Identity…
www.ijhssi.org 12 | Page
The development of children's relationships with their nation at different ages was examined by Kevin
Nugent (1994) who described the manner in which this relationship unfolded and the possible stages in its
development. Content analysis of children‟s narratives, at different age levels (10, 12, 14 and 16 years),
suggested that the relation of the child to her country is a developmental phenomenon which is mediated by
cognitive processes. However, he observed that the affective quality of the child's attachment to her country is
influenced by the cultural-historical and political milieu in which it emerges and develops. The study indicated a
loose fit between Piaget's stage of formal operations and Erikson's stage of identity achievement and the
development of the highest levels of national perspectivism (Nugent, 1994). In his comparative study of
Turkish, German and British children, Hengst (1997) focused on the „us‟ and „them‟ dynamic in the
construction of national identity among children. He suggested that while there were differences between the
groups studied in relation to the importance they assigned to national identity, there was also evidence of
another alignment, in that children, in many cases, saw themselves as more similar to other children across
nationalities than to adults who shared their nationality. Hengst suggested a „children‟s international‟ and points
to the role played by globalised media, entertainment and consumer industries in establishing a „basis for the
establishment of global solidarity‟ (Hengst, 1997). The research into childhood, nation and national identity
should take the pluralizations of the context of childhood into account and in their exposure to a globalised
world through mass media, migration and tourism, today‟s children constitute „a new type of generation
(Hengst, 1997). Participating as consumers in a globalised economy and actively engaging with a transnational
media-based culture, the current generation of Irish children is negotiating and constructing its views of the
world in an environment characterized by fluidity and diversity.
IV. DISCOURSES ON CHILDREN’S NATIONAL IDENTITY
The position of children was little different in British sociology as pointed out by Brannen and O‟Brien
(1995), where children tended to be ignored, with children only being studied indirectly in sub-disciplinary areas
such as the family or education. Brannen and O‟Brien (1995) observed that while the sociology of childhood
may not be coming of age, it is certainly an innovative growth area. Important in this respect have been a
number of texts each pushing forward this agenda in slightly different ways. In a qualitative study of Australian
children‟s perceptions of citizenship, public power and politics, Sue Howard and Judith Gill (2001), investigated
their talk about the articulation of power in the wider society inevitably raised issues of citizenship, and this in
turn led to the question of national identity. The focus was not so much whether they identify as “being
Australian”, but rather how they feel about doing so, what images they use, their language, their expressions,
their inconsistencies and so on. In this way, the research may begin to reveal the ways in which „the nation‟
operates as an imaginary construction for the participants. In terms of the substance of their responses to the
question of what it means to be Australian, the children appeared to adopt a fairly practical approach. They
listed things that were uniquely associated with Australia (animals, landscape, flag etc.) – things that have come
to be used in the wider culture to signify Australia in such things as advertisements, films, books, art and so
forth. In relation to citizenship, the children were reasonably well informed about the rights and responsibilities
of being a citizen – a state that these respondents believe entails a respectful attitude towards one‟s country. It
was particularly encouraging to note that in the multicultural nature of Australian society and the numbers of
visibly different groups constituting it, the children never questioned non-Anglo-Australians right for
citizenship. Howard and Gill (2004) concluded that that children may be begin to adopt new forms of national
identity – forms that involve an easy slippage between the global and the local, the national and the
international.
An interesting dimension to the concept of individual agency and to the idea of an international culture
of children was added by Scourfield and Davies (2003). In their empirical study of national and ethnic identities
in children in Wales, they emphasise agency in the construction of identity, particularly in relation to children of
mixed nationality. It was noted that the „culture of children‟ may act to restrict agency in some instances,
making it more difficult for individuals to challenge the dominant discourse. The empirical basis was a
qualitative research project on children‟s national and local identities in Wales, conducted with 8–11 year olds
in six primary schools across the country, with schools selected to provide diversity of region, language, social
class and ethnicity. The research focused on the aspects of the children‟s talk that highlight „race‟ and the
position of minority ethnic children within Wales. There is discussion of Welshness as racialized, children‟s
views on being white and on being a minority, and evidence of inclusivity amongst children. It was found that
the aspects of children‟s talk pose a barrier to the development of an inclusive Welsh citizenship and to the
aspects that support it. There is consideration of children‟s agency in the construction of nationhood and the
limited repertoires they can draw on for this process.
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Later, Scourfield et al. (2006) extended their study to include an ever more diverse population of
children (8-11 years) all across Wales. They realised that children were not only conscious of stereotypes and
images, they also recognized the pressures to conform to them. An ethnographic fieldwork with children on the
development of national identity in a Palestinian refugee camp situated in Jordan was undertaken by Hart
(2002). Sharon Stephens (1997) argued that an examination of the relations of children within conflicting
contexts should be multi-dimensional: There should be better structural/historical understandings of the roles
children and childhood have played in the development of modern nation-states and transformations of these
phenomena in the ways that children themselves have experienced and understood imagined national
communities and some of their historical consequences (Stephens, 1997). The young people in Hussein Camp
might be considered as „deviant‟ according to the criteria suggested by Stephens, far from fitting into any single
„mould‟, national identity, in such cases, remained ambiguous and potentially multiple. In such setting, they
automatically acquired the status of both United Nations‟ registered refugees and citizens of the Jordanian state.
A lot of research needs to be done to understand the range of ways in which children‟s lives are shaped by the
wider political and economic forces of nationalism and the global market in better ways. While conducting
ethnographic enquiry into this subject the researchers must always be attentive to the experiences and activity of
the young children themselves who resist or reshape the complex, frequently contradictory cultural politics that
inform their daily lives (Hart, 2002).
V. CONSTRUCTION OF CHILDREN’S VOICES, AGENCY AND POWER
The “new” sociological perspective of studying children which views children as competent and active
participants in all kinds of social scenarios, such as making social distinctions, expressing or withholding
judgment, drawing and redrawing boundaries between here/there, self/other, and so forth was carried forward by
Scourfield et al. (2006). This paradigm of understanding children and childhood is validated by an emerging
body of largely qualitative sociological studies that have analyzed children as active social beings. According to
Scourfield et al, there is a historical tendency to present findings of studies conducted in West Europe and North
America as though they applied universally. It is argued that the cognitive-developmental account of the
development of national attitudes is insufficient to explain the patterns of findings which were obtained, but that
social identity theory can explain the correlation between the strength of national identification. A study by
Barrett (2007) investigated the development of national identification in children growing up in the Basque
Country. The attitudes towards national out-groups which were exhibited by these children did not show any
changes as a function of age. This study highlighted that national identification in Basque children is associated
with the languages spoken in the family home. It also revealed that Basque children‟s evaluations of feelings
towards national in-groups and out-groups are associated with the home linguistic situation. Thus, in the Basque
Country, the use of language was associated with different ways of thinking and feeling about national groups.
This relationship applied not only in adults but in children as well. The traditional cognitive-developmental
account, which postulated that there is a reduction in in-group bias between 6 and 12 years of age, was unable to
explain the lack of age-related changes in attitudes towards national in-groups and out-groups that was found in
the present study. However, the study did yield evidence to support the prediction made by social identity theory
that the strength of national identification would be related to the positive distinctiveness ascribed to the national
in-group. The fact that this prediction was supported using both an evaluative and an affect measure, with
respect to both Spanish and Basque identifications, and despite the variability in the national identifications
which occurred within the sample as a function of the language used in the family home, suggests that this
relationship is robust in these children.
While conceptualising the influences that help to shape children‟s ideas about their identity, Waldron
and Pike (2006) sought to engage children in a questioning and an exploration of what being Irish means to
children and, in the process, to come to some understanding of children‟s ideas of identity. The study supported
the view that media conceptions of Irish identity are particularly influential. The commodification of national
identity through product advertising and branding was pervasive, while the children‟s drawings also indicated a
further identification with product symbols and slogans. Throughout the research, children gave evidence of real
engagement in the construction and negotiation of their ideas of national identity. This research would
substantiate the view that children are not passive receivers of popular culture, while socialisation and the
flagging of „banal nationalism‟ influence children‟s sense of national identity, they do not determine it. The
ideas relating to identity and belonging are central to the public discourse around citizenship that has emerged
internationally in recent years. In a peculiar way, the discourse relates to the role of national identity in societies
that are increasingly diverse and multicultural. In view of the growing importance of citizenship education,
understanding children‟s ideas about national identity is vital if educators are to engage children in the
construction of a hospitable, critical and reflective citizenry (Madan, 2003).
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Premised on a social constructivist view of children and childhood, the research drew on participative
and democratic methodologies. Though many studies suggest the existence of an essentialist conception of
nationalism, it also demonstrates the capacity and willingness of children to engage in critical reflection on their
constructions of their own national identity.
VI. CONCLUSION
The paradigm on “new” social studies of childhood emerged which reflects a growing cross-
fertilisation of ideas in a variety of social science disciplines towards the last decade of the twentieth century.
This paradigm evolved in response to the growing dissatisfaction among researchers with previous perspectives
on different aspects of development in children, including representation of concepts, such as nation or national
identity. The theme of nation may be conceptualised as social, political, historical, geographical, subjective and
as a more holistic construct in the form of national identity for children. The development of national identity in
children has been critically examined using “new” social studies of childhood paradigm through several
research studies. The research methods applied under different perspectives for studying children‟s national
identity have immense differences. It is quite significant to evaluate the research methods applied in research
studies as they may either limit or expand the horizon of researches undertaken within those perspectives. The
“new” social studies of childhood apply various methods - individual interviews, narrative inquiry, discourse
analysis and ethnography to collect and analyse data with children depending on the context of the research. It
gives prominence to children as “subjects” of research by collecting in-depth data on limited participants
through qualitative methods. Therefore, it integrates diversity of research approaches with children and
considers children as social actors and active participants with their set of needs, rights, individual differences
and subjective dimensions. On the criteria of giving agency to children, “new” social studies of childhood
evolved as an interdisciplinary perspective of studying child as a developing “being” – which is conceived of as
a social actor or participant, who can be understood in her/his own right. Therefore, the “new” social studies of
childhood perspective provides due significance to different socialisation factors and foregrounds the social
context of children.
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