Childhood

Drawing upon ethnographic data, this article explores how young Koreans appropriate mobile phones. By examining the role of local norms of sociality among young people, the study shows that this ‘individualizing’ technology is articulated through ‘traditionalizing’ forces. Despite dominant representations of young people’s individualization via the popular use of new technologies, young Koreans in the study internalize and negotiate local norms of sociality emphasizing collective harmony based upon self-regulation. This implies that young people’s use of ‘new’ technology is integrated with the ‘old’ contexts.

In this article two computer-produced multimedia stories created by children in their after-school centre are analysed, building on the assumption that children draw that which is important for them. The aim is to make visible the significance of narrative structure, reaccentuation, intertextuality, multivoicedness and various levels of interpretation. The author discusses how the stories spring from the children’s everyday social practice and mirror their contemporary media culture. In conclusion, the author advances the need for the appropriation of a socially shared symbolic system within the chosen genre through participation in social practices

The main objective of any housing policy is to provide everyone (adults and children) with a good-quality dwelling and housing environment. In Belgium, following the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, children and youngsters are now considered a separate target group in housing policy formation. However, little is known about the housing situation and desires of these young people. To fill this knowledge gap, the government launched a large-scale policy-oriented research project to study the housing situation, needs and desires of children and youngsters in urban living environments. The project, the results of which are discussed in this article, took a twofold approach. On the one hand, it tried to gain insight into the housing desires of youngsters on the basis of a survey; on the other hand, it explored existing housing situations, drawing on census data on households with children. A comparison of the present housing situation with respondents’ housing desires subsequently leads to the formulation of policy options. The results of the study can serve as a general frame of reference for towns and cities in the evaluation of urban development projects aimed at improving the housing situation of households with children

This article discusses the narratives of Dutch schoolchildren from varied cultural-ethnic backgrounds discussing experiences of being betrayed by a friend, and the lessons they learned from the experience. In line with earlier social constructivist research in western societies, the authors found that peers and friends acted as highly emotional forums for moral learning. Revealing intimate information led to awareness of two moral issues: the issue of norms of ‘true’ friendship and the issue of the dilemma between conforming to group norms and asserting personal opinions. To develop a personal morality in the context of Dutch schools, the children needed trustworthy friends with whom to share intimate information in order to protect them from the peer group pressure to conform. Although both girls and boys constructed shared norms of real friendship and conformed to group norms to avoid being teased, disclosing intimate information seemed to evoke more emotional chaos in girls than it did in boys

In the UK, the ethics of engaging in sociological research directly involving children have primarily been shaped by definitions of ‘competence’. While this has been a crucial guideline for researchers in shaping the concept of informed consent, it has also acted, perhaps inadvertently, as a way of excluding particular children from the research agenda. This article discusses the problems of informed consent that were encountered in research with children with learning impairments. It proposes that the process of seeking ‘assent’, when used within an ethical framework, is a more comprehensive method of gaining the agreement of children in research, which transcends language, ability, cultural, social and international borders

This article is based on a qualitative study carried out in Lira District, northern Uganda, to assess the situation of orphans cared for in extended families. The objective of the article is to bring attention to the varying vulnerability of different categories of orphans. The methods employed in data collection included ethnographic fieldwork, qualitative interviews and focus group discussions. The study found that the decision-making process that leads particular orphans to particular homes, the kin category an orphan resides with, the age and sex of the orphan and the economic situation of the household have particular influence on the orphans’ vulnerability. The authors conclude that categories of orphans who face the greatest risk of suffering, exploitation and abuse can be identified and targeted for support by drawing upon these factors as indicators