Children’s participation in research: tensions and dilemmas around ethical practice

• Authors: Chandrika Devarakonda

Abstracts

EN

Are young children respected and cared for or overlooked by the practitioner or researcher’s personal goals in research? Are issues, related to ethics in relation to children’s consent and participation in research lost in translation especially in terms of expectations and interpretation in different cultural contexts. This paper explores the diverse perspectives of issues around ethics related to research with young children in early years settings.. It questions the perceived tensions around adults’ decisions about children’s participation in research. The issues related to children’s voice, gatekeepers of consent, participation, power and children’s rights will be discussed and the extent to which they influence the decisions which adults make about children’s participation in any research.

Keywords

EN

Children’s rights; ethical practice; young children; consent; children’s participation

• Publisher: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Chrześcijańskiej Akademii Teologicznej w Warszawie
• Journal: Studia z Teorii Wychowania
• Year: 2024
• Volume: XV(1(46))
• Pages: 219-230

Dates

published

2024

Contributors

author

Chandrika Devarakonda

• University of Chester, United Kingdom

References

• Alderson, P., Morrow, V. (2004). Ethics, social research and consulting with children and young people. Ilford: Barnardos.
• Alderson, P., Morrow, V. (2011). The ethics of research with children and young people: a practical handbook. London: Sage.
• Allen, G. (2005). Research ethics in a culture of risk. In: Farrell, A. (Ed.), Ethical research with children (pp. 15-26). Berkshire: Open University Press.
• Alves, H., Gibbs, L., Marinkovic, K., Brito, I., Sheikhattari, P. (2022). Children and adolescents’ voices and the implications for ethical research. Childhood, 29(1), 126-143.
• Arnstein, S. R. (2007). A ladder of citizen participation. Journal of the American Institute of Planners, Vol. 35, No. 4, 216–224.
• Arnott, L., Martinez-Lejarreta, L., Wall, K., Blaisdell, C., Palaiologou, I. (2020). Reflecting on three creative approaches to informed consent with children under six. British Educational Research Journal, 46(4), 786-810.
• Balen, R., Blyth, E.,Calabretto, H., Fraser, C., Horrocks, C., Manby, M. (2006). Involving children in health and social research. Childhood, 13, 29.
• British Educational Research Association [BERA] (2018). Ethical guidelines for educational research (4th ed.). BERA. https://www.bera.ac.uk/publication/ethical-guidelines-for-educational-research-2018-online
• Christensen, P., Prout, A. (2002). Working with ethical symmetry in social research with children. Childhood, 9, 477.
• David, T., Tonkin, J., Powell, S., Anderson, C. (2005). Ethical aspects of power in research with children. In: A. Farrell (Ed.), Ethical research with children (pp. 124-137). London: McGraw-Hill International.
• DfES (2004). Department for Education and Skills (DfES). Children Act. London: HMSO.
• Dockett, S., Einarsdóttir, J., Perry, B. (2012). Young children's decisions about research participation: opting out. International Journal of Early Years Education, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp. 244–256.
• Dockett, S., Perry, B. (2007). Trusting children's accounts in research. Ethical research with children. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 5, 47.
• Ethical Research Involving Children (ERIC) (2023). Ethical Guidance https://childethics.com/ethical-guidance/
• Finlay, L., Gough, B., (eds) (2003). Reflexivity. A practical guide for researchers in health and social sciences. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Flewitt, R. (2005). Conducting research with young children: some ethical considerations. Early Child Development and Care. Vol. 175, No. 6, pp. 553-565.
• Flewitt, R., Ang, L. (2020). Chapter 2: Ethics and early childhood research. In: R. Flewitt, R., L. Ang, Research methods for early childhood education. Bloomsbury Publishing.
• Flewitt, R. (2022). Ethical provocations for early childhood research. In: Kumpulainen, K., Kajama, A., Erstad, O., Mäkitalo, Å., Drotner, K., Jakobsdóttir, S. (Eds.). Nordic Childhoods in the Digital Age, Chapter 19 (pp. 207-213). Oxon/New York: Routledge.
• Gallagher M. (2009). Ethics in researching with children and young people. In: Tisdall EKM, Davis J, Gallagher.M (eds). Sage: London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi and Singapore, 11–28.
• Gallagher, M., Haywood, S. L., Jones, M. W., Milne, S. (2010) ‘Negotiating Informed Consent with Children in School-Based Research: A Critical Review’. Children & Society, 24 (6), 471–482.
• Harcourt, D., Conroy, H. (2005). Informed assent: ethics and processes when researching with young children. Early Child Development and Care, Vol. 175, No. 6, 567-577.
• Harcourt, D., Conroy, H. (2009) Informed agreement to participate: Beginning the partnership with children in research. Early Child Development and Care, 179(2), 157-165.
• Hart, R. (2013). Ladder of Participation. Retrieved from: http://www.algomapublichealth.com/UserFiles/File/Media/Youth%20Engagement/1616.pdf
• Heath, S., Charles, V., Crow, G., Wiles, R. (2007). Informed consent, gatekeepers and go‐betweens: negotiating consent in child‐ and youth‐orientated institutions. British Educational Research Journal. Vol. 33, No. 3, pp. 403–417.
• Helgesson (2005). Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy. Springer.
• Himes, J. R., Saltarelli, D. (1996). Implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child: Resource mobilization in low-income countries. Summary. Innocenti Studies (innstu96/1).
• Hood, S., Kelley, P., Mayall, B. (1996) Children as Research Subjects: a Risky Enterprise. Children & Society, 10(2), 117-128.
• Homan, R. (1991). The Ethics of Social Research. Longman: London.
• Irwin, L. G., Johnson, J. L., Henderson, A., human early learning partnership examining how contexts shape young children’s perspectives of health. Child: Care, Health and Development, 33(4), 353-359.
• John, J. E. (2007) The child's right to participate in research: myth or misconception? British Journal of Nursing, Vol. 16, No. 3, 157- 160.
• Morrow, V., Richards, M. (1996) ‘The ethics of social research with children: an overview’, Children and Society, 10, 90–105.
• Manning, D. J. (2000). Presumed consent in emergency neonatal research. Wirral, Merseyside Journal of Medical Ethics, 26, 249–253.
• McKechnie, L. (2006). Observations of babies and toddlers in library settings. Library Trends, 55(1), 190-201.
• Morrow, V., Richards, M. (1996). The ethics of social research with children: An overview 1. Children & society, 10(2), 90-105.
• NSPCC (2023). Research with children: ethics, safety and promoting inclusion. Retrieved from https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/research-resources/briefings/research-with-children-ethics-safety-promoting-inclusion
• Nutbrown, C. (1998). The lore and language of early education. Department of Educational Studies: University of Sheffield.
• Nutbrown, C., Hannon, P. (2003). Children’s perspectives on family literacy: methodological issues, findings and implications for practice. Journal of Early Childhood Research. Volume 4, Issue 1, pp. 19 - 44
• Powell, M., Smith, A. B. (2006). Ethical guidelines for research with children: A review of current research ethics documentation in New Zealand. Kotuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, 1, 125-138.
• Powell, M. A., Smith, A. B. (2010). Ethical guidelines for research with children: A review of current research ethics documentation in New Zealand. http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/nzjs. doi: Kōtuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2006, pp. 125-138.
• Quennerstedt, A., Quennerstedt, M. (2014). Researching children’s rights in education: sociology of childhood encountering educational theory. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 35:1, 115-132. DOI: 10.1080/01425692.2013.783962
• Skelton, T. (2008). Research with children and young people: exploring the tensions between ethics, competence and participation. Children's Geographies. Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 21–36.
• Tisdall, E. K. M., Davis, J. (2004). Making a difference? Bringing children's and young people's views into policy‐making. Children & Society, 18(2), 131-142.
• United Nations (1989). Convention on the Rights of the Child. New York: United Nations. http://www.unicef.org.uk/UNICEFs-Work/Our-mission/UN-Convention/

Identifiers

DOI

10.5604/01.3001.0054.4431

Biblioteka Nauki

36866055