Sociology (2251)

Objective: To define social construct

and child-centred societies
Agenda: Explanation, discussion
 Social Construct

• Something that does not exist independently

in nature, but is instead an invention of
people.
• Cultural norms and practices give rise to social
constructs.
• In other words, social constructs exist
because we act like they exist.
 • Age: Time exists in nature –age doesn’t!
• Gender roles: Why do girls wear dresses? Why
can’t boys?
• Ethnicity: Cultural differences such as
language and religion, as well as place of
origin.
Childhood is a social construct
 Social Construction of Childhood
• The way children are perceived, treated, and expected
to behave varies between different cultures and
different time periods.
• The way in which childhood is socially constructed has
completely changed in the past 500 years. In olden
times, children often worked alongside adults, and
came in contact with ideas we now try to protect them
from, like sex and violence.
• PhillippeAries: “Children did not exist in medieval
Europe” until the printing press and formal education.
 Child-Centred Societies
• Modern industrial societies have become “child-
centered” –societies in which children are highly
valued, and a lot of time and effort are devoted to their
well-being.
• We now tend to believe that children deserve special
attention and protection. Aries believes this
construction of childhood is a modern invention.
• Neil Postman argues that childhood has changed
again by the growth of television, computers, and
technology. Children are once again exposed to ideas
like sex and violence from an early age.