"An exciting and engagingly written book. The case studies are intriguing and the discussion of previous theories impeccable."
- Dr. Heather Montgomery, The Open University
"What is a child? Kate Cregan and Denise Cuthbert begin this path-breaking and compelling work with a deceptively simple question. From this seemingly straightforward formulation, they unravel, interrogate and engage with some of the most pressing issues related to children in the early 21st century... This book is an absolute must for scholars in all the fields of childhood studies."
- Professor Joy Damousi, University of Melbourne
Global Childhoods draws on the authors' interdisciplinary backgrounds and original research in the fields of embodiment, theorisations of childhood, children's policy, child placement and adoption, and family formation. The book critically demonstrates how following from the modern construction of childhood which emerged unevenly from the late eighteenth century, the twentieth century saw the emergence of the conception of the normative global child, a figure finally enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The book offers a wide-ranging critical analysis of approaches to children and childhood across the social sciences. Through stimulating case studies which include the experiences of child soldiers, orphans, forced child migrants, and children and biomedicine, Cregan and Cuthbert critically test the notion of the 'global child' against the lived experiences of children around the globe.
Kate Cregan and Denise Cuthbert draw on and contributes to debates on children and the idea of the child in a wide range of disciplines: sociology, anthropology, education, children's studies, cultural studies, history, psychology, law and development studies. In its historical coverage of the rise of the concepts of the child and the global child, its critical engagement with the theorisation of childhood, and its detailed case studies, the book is essential reading for the study of children and childhood.
Industry Reviews
What is a child? Kate Cregan and Denise Cuthbert begin this path-breaking and compelling work with a deceptively simple question. From this seemingly straightforward formulation, they unravel, interrogate and engage with some of the most pressing issues related to children in the early 21st century... One of the many spectacular achievements of this book is the way in which Kate and Denise weave together the disciplinary approaches into a highly sophisticated inter-disciplinary approach to the question of the child, childhood and global perspectives... This book is an absolute must for scholars in all the field of childhood studies. -- Professor Joy Damousi This is an exciting and engagingly written book. The case studies are intriguing and the discussion of previous theories impeccable. -- Heather Montgomery This clear-sighted study of the history and present state of child-directed knowledge and practice should be compulsory reading for professionals working with children. Lawyers, doctors, psychologists, social workers, teachers - not to mention lawmakers and bureaucrats - will benefit by the challenge it offers. -- Marian Quartly Using diverse examples and applied case studies from across the globe, the authors demonstrate the relationships between contemporary understandings of childhood and historical, social, political and geographic factors. Rich in theory and extensively researched, it is a provocative, engaging and accessible contribution to the field. -- Andrew Singleton The book provides a concrete impression of the diverse and disputed facets of the globalization process and its impacts on contemporary childhoods. The authors identify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a Western-based controversially discussed driver of global norms for a "good childhood", and highlight how children's rights can be dealt with in a critical, contextualized and culture-sensitive manner. There is no similar publication in German so far. -- Dr Manfred Liebel
