The Moral Experiences of Children Living in Poverty: A Focused Ethnography

Abstract

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="section"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p><span>A focused ethnography was conducted in an after-school academic support program serving vulnerable populations in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The aim of this study was to </span><span>explore the moral experiences of children living in poverty to inform on their daily experiences and moral lives. Our results highlighted that these children, who were experiencing </span><span>economic hardship and/or social isolation, faced various social barriers, such as stigmatization, family isolation, and linguistic challenges for new immigrant children. As active agents, they navigated the challenges they encountered with help from the program. </span></p></div></div></div></div>

Childhood Ethics: An ontological advancement for childhood studies

“…Even in the face of significant obstacles that can entail serious reprisals, young people can lead community actions that are beneficial to them and their peers, revealing the social basis of their agency. In other Montreal‐based research, young people have demonstrated agential action as they engage in community organisation activities to learn ways to navigate oppressive experiences within their schools and families or participate in research to reveal humiliating or harmful practices in a child mental health program (Montreuil, Ménard, & Carnevale, 2018; Montreuil, Saint‐Laurent, & Carnevale, 2017; Montreuil, Thibeault, McHarg, & Carnevale, 2019). That is, young people as agents can draw on social institutions that they consider supportive (i.e.…”

“…This process can be used with all children, regardless of age or expressive capacities, given that agential expression is not limited solely to children's verbal articulation — referring again to a ‘thick’ conception of children's voices (Carnevale, 2020). We have published demonstrations of these approaches applied to various situations, such as those described at the beginning of this paper; for example, youth with gender identity concerns (Noiseux et al., 2019), First Nations youth with cancer (Van Praagh et al., 2018), child welfare (Montreuil et al., 2017; Van Praagh et al., 2018), Tanzanian community (Sebti et al., 2019); as well as other related scenarios (Carnevale, 2012; Carnevale & Gaudreault, 2013). Below, in the final section, we illustrate how this approach can be applied in practice in our discussion of one of the concerns identified at the beginning of this paper.…”

“…To demonstrate how the Childhood Ethics ontology described in this article can be operationalised in practice, we present an analysis of one of the situations outlined above. For additional illustrations of Childhood Ethics in practice, see Carnevale, 2012; Montreuil et al., 2017; Noiseux et al., 2019; Sebti et al., 2019; Van Praagh et al., 2018.…”

Exploring the health and well-being of children and youth in Winneway, Québec

“…This view is being challenged as it reinforces children and youth as passive rather than active in their health and well-being (Marjorie Montreuil & Carnevale, 2016). Recently, the perspectives of children and youth are being recognized as valuable (M Montreuil, Thibeault, McHarg, & Carnevale, 2018;Marjorie Montreuil, Saint-Laurent, & Carnevale, 2017;Riley, 2004;Sixsmith, Gabhainn, Fleming, & O'Higgins, 2007), and new research focusing on the health and well-being of children and youth are increasingly taking a child-centered approach to help capture their perspectives (Redmond, Skattebol, & Saunders, 2013).…”

Migrant families with children in Montreal, Canada and transnational family support: a protocol for a focused ethnography

“…For children and youth, many struggle to reconcile the cultural differences and have to cope with intergenerational conflict, stigmatisation and sometimes violence 12 52–55. Some also have to adapt to a new school structure (teaching styles and expectations) and often, learning in a new language 53 55. For those living in poverty and low-resource neighbourhoods, overcrowding and exposure to gangs and crime can be stressful 55 56.…”