Participation as a methodological and ethical issue in child protection research

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how children have been involved in research activities in recent international child protection research and what kinds of ethical and methodological decisions are made by researchers regarding children’s participation. Design/methodology/approach In the paper, the complexity of children’s participation in research activities is analysed through an integrative literature review. Findings Children’s right to self-determination and the right to make informed decisions were the most challenging ethical principles to implement in practice. The study shows that researchers usually decide on the research design, and child welfare professionals and parents assess the eligibility of the children as research subjects. Originality/value More ethical reflection and critical discussion on the rights that adults, both parents and professionals, have in deciding the involvement of children in research activities is required.

Professionals’ views on children’s service user involvement

“…In childhood and child welfare research, the criticism has been made that opportunities for child participation are all too often made available only to children judged to be capable of doing so by child welfare professionals and researchers (Kim, 2016;Kiili and Moilanen, 2019). In the context of service user involvement, this is a valid concern.…”

“…Children were not considered to be partners in ethical reflection, despite the fact that children's needs, aspirations and realities should be at the core of service user involvement. Several studies have shown that effective service user participation involves encouraging and supporting children to express their views and challenge uncritical acceptance by authorities of the gatekeeping of their knowledge by professionals (Kiili and Moilanen, 2019;Tisdall, 2017;Jackson et al, 2020).…”

“…The UNCRC has inspired numerous researchers in their efforts to develop models for participation. One widely used model on children's participation is developed by Lundy (2007;Lundy et al, 2011) (Kiili and Moilanen, 2019;Bourke and MacDonald, 2018;Davies et al, 2019). The model has four interrelated elements: Space (opportunity to express views), Voice (facilitation in expressing views), Audience (views must be listened to) and Influence (views must be acted upon) (Lundy, et al, 2011, 717).…”

“…It would be useful for professionals to have a shared understanding, as children use many kinds of services. For children themselves, the issue is not about who organises services targeted to them but how they are organised and how their participation is supported (Larkins et al, 2014;Kiili and Moilanen 2019;ibid. ).…”

Stories as findings in collaborative research: making meaning through fictional writing with disadvantaged young people

“…Yet Keats' work does not involve the (adult) participants in the analysis, and Nind (2011) notes that more research is needed on how learning-disabled children, in particular, can engage in data analysis. In a review of research with children in contact with child welfare services, of the 78 studies included, only four described how children were included in data analysis (Kiili et al, 2019). Subsequent research (Larkins et al, 2013;Gillet-Swan and Sargeant, 2018) has shown that narrative summaries of interviews and collaborative coding can enable children to add cultural and contextual insight in the analysis of data generated with other children and young people.…”