The selection of informants in kindergarten research in Norway: A critical review

Abstract

The institution of the kindergarten serves important functions in western societies. The mandate of kindergarten staff reflects this, encompassing aspects of vital importance for children’s well-being and their learning and development processes. Empirical research is needed to scrutinise how kindergarten staff perform these tasks. Analyses of previous studies (Gulbrandsen, Johansson & Nilsen, 2002; Hopperstad, Hellem & Kjørholt, 2005; Borg, Backe-Hansen & Kristiansen, 2008) indicate that while assistants are the main occupational group in Norwegian kindergartens, they have rarely been engaged as informants in kindergarten research. This article reports results from a literature review that investigated which occupational groups have featured as informants in Norwegian kindergarten research from 2008 to 2017. The searches resulted in 149 hits; kindergarten assistants were included as informants in only 43 hits, and they were never the sole occupational group investigated. In closing, the article discusses the methodological and epistemological implications resulting from the skewed representation of kindergarten staff.