The role of objects in understanding children's participation in paediatric rehabilitation

Abstract

This article will present a consultation with a nine-year-old boy, his parents and professionals at a paediatric rehabilitation unit in Norway. The empirical case illustrates how the boy's participation appears when toys and equipment is used, and also when the conversation proceeds during the consultation. The case is analysed by investigating the child's participation through how the interaction between the different persons takes shape, and how toys and equipment are used in the consultation. The application of role theory and a materialist approach focusing on the use of objects illuminates the boy's participation in different ways, thus providing relevant information about how the child's participation affects professionals' decisions in regard to the child.

Looking for a ‘cure’: negotiating ‘walking’ in a Turkish rehabilitation hospital

“…First, especially in Scandinavian countries, emphasis rests on client participation in rehabilitation, sometimes referred to as 'user involvement' (Petersen et al 2012) or 'client-driven services' (Järvikovski, Puumalainen, and Härkäpää 2015;Virtanen et al 2011). In this context, children's participation in paediatric rehabilitation is discussed in particular (Bekken 2014a). Second, a few studies discuss the experience of rehabilitation from the disabled person's standpoint (Crisp 2000;Lingsom 2009).…”

“…Within Disability Studies, there exists only a limited and relatively recent body of literature on the social experience of physical rehabilitation (for example, Arntzen, Hamran, and Borg 2015;Bekken 2014a;Crisp 2000). This literature focuses on social constructions of disability in rehabilitation (Sullivan 2005), disabled people's own experiences in the process (Bekken 2014b;Lingsom 2009), and the role of 'client participation' in planning (Alve et al 2013).…”

Parents with troubled upbringings and their perception of childhood

“…Parenthood is to be understood in relation to childhood, and what is considered “good” parenthood should be situated in relation to notions of children's interests and rights (Lind, Westerling, Sparrman, & Dannesboe, ). Within contemporary Western thought, there are certain expectations for how children should be positioned as participants, building on children's rights to be considered as independent actors and not as parents' property (Alanen, ; Bekken, ; Gulbrandsen, ). Furthermore, current Western ideology encourages women in particular to “mother” their children intensively and selflessly, responding to their children's every want and need (Bemiller, , self‐citation).…”

“…The concept of children's agency was introduced in the mid‐1980s within the field of the sociology of childhood (Bolin, ). Children's participation has since been studied from different perspectives, and those studies have given insights into general and specific levels of children's everyday life (Bekken, ; Clavering & McLaughlin, ; Percy‐Smith & Thomas, ). During the 20th century, children were given agency in the sense that they were perceived to be capable of acting on their own behalf, and it was thought that they should have influence on situations and decisions affecting them (Bekken, ).…”

“…influence on situations and decisions affecting them (Bekken, 2014). Some will say that participation lacks its own distinctive theoretical framework and that there is uncertainty about what the term means.…”