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This article explores the conditions under which the sociology of childhood was created, suggests some of the problems encountered in this effort and points to some possible remedies. It is argued that the construction of a sociology of childhood entailed a double task. First, space had to be created for childhood within sociological discourse. Second, the increasing complexity and ambiguity of childhood as a contemporary, destabilized phenomenon had to be confronted. It is argued that, whilst a space for childhood has been created, this was accomplished largely in terms of modernist sociology, a discourse that was increasingly unable to deal adequately with the destabilized world of late modernity. An important aspect of this problem is apparent in the reproduction within the sociology of childhood of the dichotomized oppositions that characterize modernist sociology. Three of these oppositions (agency and structure, nature and culture, being and becoming) are explored. It is suggested that moving the sociology of childhood beyond the grip of such modernist thinking entails developing a strategy for 'including the excluded middle'. Inter alia this may necessitate greater attention to the interdisciplinarity and the hybridity of childhood; being symmetrical about how childhoods are constructed; attending to the networks, flows and mediations of its production, and the co-construction of generational relations.

Alan Prout:
Childhood bodies: construction, agency and hybridity

This paper explores the relationship between the sociology of childhood and the sociology of the body. Noting that the two fields are marked by mutual neglect, it reviews some of the theoretical issues that underlie the enterprise of bringing them together. Three key themes emerge from this discussion. The first concerns social constructionism. Both fields draw on this theoretical approach and, it is argued, both meet its limits. The paper argues that social constructionist accounts of both childhood and the body tend to exclude (or at least de-emphasize) the possibility that social life has a material as well as discursive (or representational) component. The second theme is that of children's agency in the interpretation, negotiation and utilisation of their bodies. Seeing children as social actors balances a former emphasis on the socialization of children by highlighting the ways in which they are also agents, participants shaping as well as being shaped by society. However, it is argued that the sociology of childhood has tended to essentialise children's agency rather than decentering it and analyzing it as an effect. The third theme draws on actor network theory in order to unravel some of the ways in which children's bodies are inextricably interwoven with other aspects of the material environment – artifacts, machines and technologies. Children's bodies emerge as hybrid entities. They are inseparable from, produced in, represented by and performed through their connections with other material objects. This line of enquiry feeds back into the question of children's agency by reconstituting it less as an essential attribute of children and more as an effect of the connections made between a heterogeneous array of materials including bodies, representations and technologies.

When the first edition of this seminal work appeared in 1990, the sociology of childhood was only just beginning to emerge as a distinct sub-discipline. Drawing together strands of existing sociological writing about childhood and shaping them into a new paradigm, the original edition of this Routledge Classic offered a potent blend of ideas that informed, even inspired, many empirical studies of children's lives because it provided a unique lens through which to think about childhood. Featuring a collection of articles which summarised the developments in the study of childhood across the social sciences, including history, psychology, sociology, anthropology, feminist and developmental studies, scholars and professionals from developed and developing countries world-wide shared their knowledge of having worked and of working with children. Now with a new introduction from the editors to contextualise it into the 21st century, this truly ground-breaking text which helped establish childhood studies as a distinctive field of enquiry is being republished..

Hearing the Voices of Childrenprovides a fresh perspective on social policy. At the heart of the book is the emergence of 'children's voices' and the implications of this for social policy. The authors argue that children's voices should be heard much more strongly in the process of policy formation at all levels. Although there is growing support for this idea, it is not without opposition, and the authors themselves make many critical points about the current attempts to put it into practice. The book is divided into four main themes: hearing children's voices; discourses of childhood; children and services; and resources for children.Childhood experts from the UK, Scandinavia, Germany and Australia examine how assumptions and models about childhood interact with social policy. They challenge conventional ideas about childhood and discuss ways in which children's voices might become more influential in shaping policy. There are many obstacles to overcome, but the contributors to this volume show that children's participation is possible, and needed, if services are to be improved. This book is essential reading for students and academics in the field of childhood studies, sociology, social policy and education. It will also be of interest to practitioners in the social, child and youth services.The EditorsChristine Hallett is Professor of Social Policy in the Department of Applied Social Science at the University of Stirling.Alan Prout is Professor of Sociology in the Department of Applied Social Science at the University of Stirling. He was also the Director of the ESRC 'Children 5–16' Research Programme.

Bringing together two topics of wide and growing sociological interest, The Body, Childhood and Society examines how children's bodies are constructed in schools, families, courts, hospitals and in film. Recognising that children's bodies are a target for adult practices of social regulation, the contributors show that children are also active in their construction, employ them in resistance and social action, and generate their own meanings about them. The editor, a leading sociologist of childhood, draws out the theoretical implications of this work, indicates the limits of social constructionism, and suggests new ways of thinking about the hybrid of material, discursive and collective processes involved. It will be a valuable text for social scientists interested in the body, childhood, schooling, the law, medicine and health

Processes of involvement and representation are particularly important in UK public services if users' interests are adequately to be taken into account. Yet there are several different, sometimes competing ways for users' views to be represented, and their interaction is not well understood. This article reports on research exploring these issues in relation to three public services – housing, social care and leisure services. We asked, how do public service users experience and evaluate the alternative ways in which their interests may be represented, and what factors guide their 'choice about voice'? Mechanisms available for users to express their views can be categorised as 'hierarchical' (e.g. contacting elected officials); individualistic (e.g. complaints procedures); or group-based (e.g. user forums). Users make assumptions about what channel is appropriate for particular issues in a particular context. However, their ability to communicate via their chosen channel is dependent on viable opportunities to do so. This idea of viability (or lack of it) goes beyond the simple provision of a full range of channels. It relates to the prospects of users' views being recognised and accepted – and to the sense of disconnection and withdrawal that often accompanies low expectations or disappointing experiences.