control over the process. Where consent becomes a more grey area and highlights
different research skills, is when we look at young people.
Young people are very proud of their opinions and like to be heard in a more adult
capacity. With regards to research and consent, this means that the researcher should
discuss the project in detail with the intended participants, giving them chance to
digest and ask questions. Legal consent within this age group will be discussed further
on, but obtaining parental consent at whatever age would be a preferred choice in my
opinion. A letter that clearly sets out details of the proposed study, how data will be
used and rules on anonymity, how research will be carried out, and with their right to
withdraw at any stage clearly stated, means that not only do the children and their
families feel more secure, but that the researcher also has proof of participation.
Whilst initial consent is absolutely vital in order to undertake a research project,
inherent to all research is check consent throughout. Regards early childhood and also
with middle childhood to some extent, this means the researcher looking for signs of
distress, as demonstrated with ‘The Strange Situation’ scenario from the media guide.
Whilst young people can certainly say when they are happy, it should always be clear
that participants of any age can withdraw at any time. A fully ethical research project
will be equally considerate to all age groups.
Competence
Ability can vary greatly between similar ages, making research with children a
complex process with no set formula in place to ease the task of the researcher. Early
childhood in particular encompasses enormous physical and developmental change,
and competence is not easy to gauge. This means that the researcher must come up
with what they deem to be the most efficient way to secure accurate data, whilst being
prepared to use ingenuity at the drop of a hat. A good idea when working with this
age group would be to actively involve the family, or someone who has regular
contact. This helps to give an all round picture of the child’s capabilities as opposed to
a comparative snapshot, thereby minimising the risk of variables. However, as not all
children are in situations where their behaviour and ability can be compared to others,
for example, nursery placement, the issue of competence remains difficult.
The period covering Middle childhood sees children attending school, and also at the
current time, being assessed by the Standard Assessment Tests twice within this
period gives a guideline as to academic capabilities. However, results in Maths,
Science and English are not a valid indicator of competence for a researcher. Jean
Piaget is a very well known developmental psychologist whose thinking are very
well used within many areas of childhood interest. He argues that there is a major
change in children’s thinking around the age of seven. If this is to be believed,
researchers can use this as an indicator when looking at their research method for
work within this age group, but differences in maturity, language and understanding
make the task far from straight forward. Sutton et als paper on ‘Social Cognition and
Bullying’ looks at this age group, using tests to assess verbal ability, the participant’s
role in bullying and to assess their social cognition. This provides a guide to which the
researchers can work to, but as we know with research, everything is subjective.
Research method used.
Whilst it has been tempting to touch upon this subject in detail in the above
paragraphs, I felt it appropriate to ‘hang fire’ and cover this topic in its own right.
Choice of method to be used is often down to the researcher’s individual preferences
and their response not only to the initial subject, but how this progresses as the study
takes place. However, it is clear that certain methods are more suited to different age
groups.
When looking at early childhood, it is clear that creativity is a necessity. Often, it is
necessary to use a variety of methods, perhaps even adapting these in the live situation
of the research project. When Alison Clark set out to develop a framework within
which young children could express their day to day experiences and feelings, she
decided to use varying methods to collect data. Whilst some of these were the more
expected types, like observation and interviewing, she also used very innovative
methods, thereby gathering a wide range of views and perspectives, including those of
parents and the children themselves. As someone with an interest in early childhood
myself, her idea to let children take photographs of what was important to them stands
out, and is one I would certainly look to include in any research of my own.
Whilst early childhood involves a lot of play and drawing, when we get to middle
childhood, a more adult approach to research method can already be used. This can
mean using both interviews and questionnaires, but as illustrated in Kellet and Ding’s
chapter on middle childhood, it is the adaptation of these techniques makes them
appropriate for this age group. They mention brainstorming, ranking exercises and
visual prompts, which all play to the child’s sense of fun without condescension.
Naturally, when it comes to young people, interviews and questionnaires seem an
obvious choice. However, whilst realising that this age group need a voice and their
opinions are both worthy and important for self development, it should still be
recognised that they are children and continuing to grow, both in body and mind. In
Evans and Morgan’s study of ‘Improving Pedestrian Road Safety among
Adolescents’, the researchers look at ‘The Theory of Planned Behaviour’ and look to
explain why young people who have the necessary perceptual and cognitive skills to
cross a road safely, are more likely to become casualties. In an effort to increase
awareness among the age group, they were encourage to produce a play to highlight
road safety. This shows that creativity is common to all the age groups, and a much
desired research skill when working with children and young people.
Legal Issues
When it comes to research with children, the pendulum is swinging towards children
in all age groups becoming far more involved in the whole process. When it comes to
the law, the researcher must ensure that they are fully aware of all implications. When
it comes to looking at different childhoods requiring different research skills, the legal
requirements mainly concern the young person group, and whether they are deemed
as adults. In Scotland, full legal capacity is acquired at sixteen and that is when
parental rights cease. However, when it comes to the law in general, all three age
groups command similar considerations, as those under the age of eighteen are
deemed to be children. As such, adult consent is always sought before undertaking
research. From Takei’s ‘How Do Deaf Infants Attain First Signs’ early childhood
research, to Aldgate and Bradley’s ‘Children’s Experiences of Short-Term
Accommodation in middle childhood’, and Evan and Norman’s ‘Improving
Pedestrian Road Safety among Adolescents’, all gain appropriate consent from adult
gatekeepers, be it parents, social care workers or teachers in authority.
Context and Location
When it comes to considering where research with your chosen participants should
occur, the researcher needs to consider both where would be most suitable and also
the natural feel of the situation. In order to obtain the best results with least variables,
it may not, for example, be good to take children out of familiar surroundings. This
does, however, depend on the age group of those involved.
When it comes to early childhood, it would seem that familiarity of surroundings
would be beneficial to the validity of the research findings. Children who are taken
into foreign surroundings may find themselves easily distracted by objects and people
around them, and their behaviour can change in front of strangers. This can even been
said for babies as young as six months (Bruce and Meggit, 2002:71). In Samantha
Punch’s ‘Children’s Use of Time and Space in Rural Bolivia’, it is strongly evident
that she has taken great care to make the participants feel at ease, very much including
the adult carers into that equation, and wanting to observe them in their natural
surroundings. As Punch’s study is carried out in a place where people are very wary
of outsiders in general, this is a good example of a researcher using and adapting their
skills to the best of their ability.
The most obvious location for childhood research would be school, a place where you
have access to multiple children in a familiar context. David, Edwards and Allred,
2001, feel that participation could verge on coercion if children interpret it as
schoolwork, but I personally feel that a researcher can overcome that thinking by
using more creative methods and tasks that don’t directly relate to the usual school.
Context and location can have more considerations when it comes to young people.
Whilst the school setting is an obvious choice again for location, the social aspect of
this group means that there are far more places that can be considered, for example
youth centres. The older child is also more able to independently attend unfamiliar
locations without their natural behaviour being obviously affected. The researcher
then has to consider factors such as travel to the location and safety of the participant,
as well as ensuring they feel welcome and their efforts appreciated.
If research takes place within a group setting like a school, researchers need to
consider what context can minimise any gender, intellect, class or race divide, whilst
ensuring the young people feel in control of the situation. As Evans mentions in the
her commentary on her Road Safety’ research, “How were we going to reach this age
group? Would they complete such a questionnaire? More importantly, would they
complete it properly and honestly?”. Research with young people demands a wide
range of considerations for the researcher.
In conclusion, looking at different research skills for different childhoods is
impossible to fit into an essay of this length. As much as age groups differ, so do the
ages within those groups, as do personalities, opinions, upbringings and more. This
means a researcher needs a wide range of skills in order to obtain the most valid
results possible. As Kellet and Ding say, “The researcher has to communicate the
nature of the problem to the child. If, however, the child does not share the
experimenter’s understanding of the words being used, then a failure to complete the
task might well be due to a breakdown in communication rather than the child’s
inability to reason appropriately.” The onus for a successful research project lies with
the researcher themselves.
Word Count: 2331
References
Punch, S. (2001) ‘Negotiating Autonomy: children’s use of time and space in rural Bolivia’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Clarke, A. (2001) ‘The Mosaic Approach and research with young children’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Coates, E, (2004) ‘”I forgot the sky” Children’s stories contained within their drawings’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Sutton, J., Smith, P.K.& Swettenham, J. (1999) ‘Social cognition and bullying: Social inadequacy or skilled manipulation?’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Takei, W. (2001) ‘How do deaf infants attain first signs?’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Aldgate, J. and Bradley, M. (1999) ‘Supporting Families through Short-term Fostering’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Evans, D. and Norman O. (2002) ‘Improving pedestrian road safety among adolescents: an application of the Theory of Planned Behaviour’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) The Reality of Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Bruce, T. and Meggitt, C. (2002) Child Care and Education, 3rd edn, London, Hodder and Stoughton
David, M., Edwards, R., and Alldred, P. (2001) ‘Children and school-based research: “informed consent” or “educated consent”?’ British Educational Research Journal, 27(3): 347-365
Langston, A., Abbott, L., Lewis, V. and Kellett, M. ‘Early Childhood’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) Doing Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Ding, S. and Kellett, M. ‘Middle Childhood’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) Doing Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
France, A. ‘Young People’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) Doing Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Masson, J.. ‘The Legal Context’ in V. Lewis, M. Kellett, C. Robinson, S. Fraser and S. Ding (eds) Doing Research with Children and Young People, London: Sage in association with the Open University.
Focus II Clip 4, ‘The Strange Situation’, Open University
