NEW ARTICLE: Postdoctoral fellow Hege Stein Helland has published a study examining Nordic populations’ attitudes toward children’s participation in child protection proceedings in the renowned journal Child Abuse & Neglect.
While the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) mandates that states promote and ensure participation for all children, irrespective of their age and maturity, many children continue to be excluded from these crucial decisions based on paternalistic justifications. This issue persists even in the child-centric and child-rights-oriented Nordic countries.
In the publication titled “Does age and maltreatment matter? A survey experiment of the Nordic populations’ attitudes toward participation,” Helland investigates the participation-protection dilemma by analyzing how citizens from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden (N = 5,073) perceive children’s rights to participate and their need for protection.
Key Findings on Attitudes Toward Participation
The research employs an experimental survey methodology, utilizing a between-subjects factorial vignette design. This approach systematically varies the child’s age (either 5 or 15 years) and the type of maltreatment experienced (sexual violence, physical violence, or emotional neglect) across the vignettes presented to participants.
– The findings indicate that while there is general support among Nordic citizens for children’s participation in child protection, notable differences exist between countries. Support for participation tends to be lower for younger children, accompanied by heightened protective attitudes, states Helland.
Interestingly, the type of maltreatment experienced did not significantly influence citizens’ views on participation. However, there was a discernible trend of increased protectiveness towards younger children facing emotional neglect.
Implications for Children’s Rights and Protection
The study highlights that the right of children to participate in decision-making processes is largely acknowledged among Nordic citizens.
– Further exploration of the complexities surrounding age and maltreatment in the context of children’s participation is essential to ensure their voices are adequately represented in protection decisions, explains Helland.
The article is part of the Legitimacy Challenges and Children’s Right to Participation projects. It is open access and can be found here.