Table Of ContentTHE POLITICS OF CHILDHOODS
REAL AND IMAGINED
The second volume of Priscilla Alderson’s popular and renowned book, Childhoods
Real and Imagined , relates dialectical critical realism to childhood. By demonstrating
their relevance and value to each other, Alderson presents a practical introductory
guide for applying critical realism to research about children and young people.
Each chapter summarises key themes from several academic disciplines and pol-
icy areas, ranging from climate change and social justice between generations, to
neoliberalism, social reform and imagining utopias. Children’s and adults’ views and
experiences are reviewed, and whereas the fi rst volume deals with more personal
and local aspects of childhood, this volume widens the scope into debates about
global politics, which so seldom mention children. Each chapter demonstrates how
children and young people are an integral part of the whole of society and are often
especially affected by policies and events.
This book is written for everyone who is researching, studying or teaching
about childhood, or who cares for and works with children and young people, as
well as those interested in critical realist approaches.
Priscilla Alderson i s Professor Emerita of Childhood Studies at the Social Science
Research Unit, UCL Institute of Education, London.
Ontological Explorations
Other titles in this series : Relational Sociology
A new paradigm for the social sciences
From One ‘Empire’ to the Next Pierpaolo Donati
Radha D’Souza
Sociological Realism
Science for Humanism Edited by Andrea M. Maccarini,
The recovery of human agency Emmanuele Morandi and
Charles R. Varela Riccardo Prandini
Philosophical Problems of The Economics of Science:
Sustainability A Critical Realist Overview
Taking sustainability forward with Volume 1: Illustrations and
a critical realist approach philosophical preliminaries
Jenneth Parker David Tyfi eld
Dialectic and Difference The Economics of Science:
Dialectical critical realism and A Critical Realist Overview
the grounds of justice Volume 2: Towards a synthesis of
Alan Norrie political economy and science and
technology studies
Interdisciplinarity and David Tyfi eld
Climate Change
Transforming knowledge and Ontology Revisited
practice for our global future Metaphysics in social and
Edited by Roy Bhaskar, Cheryl Frank, political philosophy
Karl Georg Høyer, Petter Naess and Ruth Groff
Jenneth Parker
Childhoods Real and Imagined
Conversations about Volume 1: An introduction to critical
Refl exivity realism and childhood studies
Edited by Margaret S. Archer Priscilla Alderson
Naturalizing Critical Realist The Contradictions of Love
Social Ontology Towards a feminist–realist ontology
Tuukka Kaidesoja of sociosexuality
Lena Gunnarsson
What’s Critical about
Critical Realism? Capitalism, Citizenship and
Essays in reconstructive the Arts of Thinking
social theory A Marxian–Aristotelian linguistic
Frederic Vandenberghe account
Kathryn Dean
Integrating Knowledge
through Interdisciplinary Understanding Mental Health
Research A critical realist exploration
Problems of theory and practice David Pilgrim
Dominic Holland
Indigenist Critical Realism
Post-Secularism, Realism Human rights and fi rst Australians’
and Utopia wellbeing
Transcendence and immanence Gracelyn Smallwood
from Hegel to Bloch
Jolyon Agar The Denial of Nature
Environmental philosophy in the
Critical Realism, Somalia and era of global capitalism
the Diaspora Community Arne Johan Vetlesen
Abdullahi Haji-Abdi
The Politics of Childhoods
Reality and Self Realisation: Real and Imagined
Bhaskar’s Metaphilosophical Volume 2: Practical application
Journey toward Non-dual of critical realism and childhood
Emancipation studies
Seo MinGyu Priscilla Alderson
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THE POLITICS OF
CHILDHOODS REAL
AND IMAGINED
Volume 2:
Practical application of critical
realism and childhood studies
Priscilla Alderson
First published 2016
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2016 Priscilla Alderson
The right of Priscilla Alderson to be identifi ed as author of this work has been asserted by
her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN: 978-0-415-81820-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-94889-1 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-66938-0 (ebk)
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CONTENTS
The Politics of Childhoods Real and Imagined
Volume 2
Practical application of critical realism
and childhood studies
Priscilla Alderson
Acknowledgements ix
PART III
Background 1
8 Introduction 3
PART IV
Childhoods in the real ‘adult’ world 15
9 Ecology: human relations with nature 17
10 Economics: interpersonal, intergenerational
and international relations 53
11 Emergence: social structures 90
12 Ethics and emancipation: reimagining the
politics of childhood 135
Glossary 167
References 176
Name index 191
Subject index 193
viii Contents
Childhoods Real and Imagined
Volume 1
An introduction to critical realism and childhood studies
Priscilla Alderson
Published May 2013
Acknowledgements
PART I
Background
1 Introduction
2 Trends in research about children, childhood and youth
PART II
Experiencing and imagining childhoods
3 Real bodies: material relations with nature
4 Space: interpersonal relations
5 Time: social relations and structures
6 Inner being: alienation and fl ourishing
7 Conclusions to Volume 1: the relevance of DCR
to childhood studies
Appendix Background summaries of selected research studies
Notes
References
Name Index
Subject Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book draws on my 30 years of social research with children and adults
(summarised at the end of Volume 1). I would like to thank all the hundreds of
people who have helped me, by giving interviews, by allowing me to observe and
write about them, by advising on the research projects and by providing funds and
much other support.
I am grateful to many colleagues and co-researchers, and to everyone whose
publications have informed and challenged my work. Thank you to my doctoral
students, and to the students from many countries who have taken part in our
international Sociology of Childhood and Children’s Rights MA course.
I owe a debt of gratitude to Roy Bhaskar who commissioned this book and
advised on the fi rst volume. Sadly, he died last autumn. That was before the draft of
this second volume was ready for him to read, and so the book lacks the consider-
able improvements that I know he would have suggested.
Thank you Brad Shipway, Tom Cockburn and Chris Goodey for sending your
very useful critical comments on the draft chapters – although I am responsible for
shortcomings in the book.
I would also like to thank all the students and academics from around the world
who have attended the fortnightly post-graduate seminars on critical realism at
UCL Institute of Education, which Roy founded in 2008 and which still continue.
These discussions constantly inform my work.
I am grateful to Alan Jarvis, who agreed that Volume 1 could be expanded into
Volume 2, with Emma Chappell at Routledge, and to Elizabeth Silas.
And once again, thank you my dear expert advisers on realism, my grandchil-
dren: Hari, Amy and Robbie; Chloe and Toby; and Claris and Sian.
