Definition Of Childhood

Definition of childhood:

Childhood is a very wide concept in itself and for many centuries researchers have tried to break it down by looking deeper into aspects of it and elaborating on the definition of its integrity. Researchers such as Allison and James refered to the notion of childhood to be ‘ a complex phenomenon’, whilst others refer to this concept as a number of stages that differentiate children from being adults. Childhood should not only be seen as the stage between birth and adulthood, its complexity lies within the state and quality of the children’s life throughout that crucial time.

The term childhood began to gain more recognition by the end of the 16th century and all of the 17th century. The notion of childhood was anatomized

Throughout the years, researchers ,such as Jackson in 1982, through intensive research concluded that the modern western society is known to protect, shield and pamper their children from the reality of life more than other societies. This is also proved when compared to historical evidence, children throughout the previous generations were taught to be more mature, capable and independent than today 's generations. At times cultural backgrounds, family status, social status, gender as well as many other factors are not regarded or given enough importance to. This means that children have to be dictated upon the knowledge they need to know not by experience but upon the factor of age. This perception is also supported by Finch, ‘Age groups as social categories need to be seen in relation to their intersections with other important variables such a class, gender, and ethnicity.’ (

With discovering the focus of the emphasis being put by society improvement could occur over a prolonged time. Researchers agree that childhood, ‘’in contemporary western societies, is also popularly regarded as the potential antecedent for adult neurosis’’. Therefore childhood is seen as an important factor in regards to the future, as well as a contributing factor in the adult life. In fact research proves that experiences lived in our childhood easily effect our future. We also see this as a reccurent theme in schools, as children are seen to be the future generation. Therefore children are lead to believe that their childhood is not as important as their future, which creates a proctracting desire to grow