Children participating and developing personal agency in and across various

social practices 

Charlotte Højholt & Dorte Kousholt

1. Introduction and central points

• A problem: the way we understand children and families living with social problems or a so-called problematic background seems to be part of the very problem.

• A paradox: In a situation of shared care and a child life across different contexts together with peers -

• policy and Interventions focus on intergenerational transmission.

2. Social inequalities conceptualized as a question of intergenerational transmission (my underlinings)

• ‘to determine how parental worklessness impacts on children’s cognitive ability, education attainment, behaviours, attitude to school, ...’ (Barnes et al 2012 p 4)

•  ‘Among these individuals, parents’ childhood risk profile (…) has been shown to contribute to subsequent socioeconomic disadvantage’ (Saltaris et al 2004 p 106)

2. Social inequalities conceptualized as a question of intergenerational transmission (my underlinings)

• ‘parental stimulation predicts the intellectual functioning of preschool-aged offspring’ (ibid p1)

• ‘In light of these indications of intergenerational transfer of risk .., we became interested in uncovering the potential mechanisms contributing to the continuity of maladjustment,’ (ibid p 107).

2. Social inequalities conceptualized as a question of intergenerational transmission

• Paul’s mother is angry with the professionals; she feels that they insinuate that her way of being a mother is the basis of the problems.

• Paul’s parents are both young and uneducated, and he is, in discussions about the problems, regarded as having a “weak background” (Højholt & Kousholt 2015).

• ‘Being a poor child increases the chances of being a poor adult but … other factors can operate independently …household characteristics and initial endowments have been found to be important –… their capabilities and characteristics, and their power to exercise agency.’ (ibid p v)

2. Social inequalities conceptualized as a question of intergenerational transmission

3. Developing agency through participation in social practice

– theoretical background and general observations

• To anchor development in an approach to social practice where the historical and conflictual nature of social processes is emphasised (Lave)

• Conduct of everyday life (Holzkamp)

• - is a fundamental collective process - subjects conduct their life in collaboration with other subjects and in relation to different matters in their lives (Borg, Chimirri, Dreier, Højholt & Kousholt, Juul, Røn Larsen & Stanek)

• social coordination and conflicts as central problems of the personal conduct of life (Axel).

3. Developing agency through participation in social practice

– theoretical background and general observations

• The personal task of developing personal preferences, plans and priorities is closely connected to participation in social communities.

• The developmental challenges are interwoven in social coordination and possibilities for creating something together with someone else.

3. Developing agency through participation in social practice – theoretical background and general observations

• general challenges in the life of children that we often overlook

• the general conflictuality as a background for specific dilemmas.

• problems appear related to deviant circumstances, often related to an individual child and its background.

• we overlook how the children are positioned differently in relation to managing the general challenges

4. Examples

• Paul: "Nobody can come home to me - I don’t have anybody who is coming home to me” (Højholt & Kousholt 2015)

• a proces of mutual resignation - where the different parties experience restricted influence and give up on each other.

• Mads: I don’t play with anyone. I don’t have any friends here. (Højholt & Kousholt 2014)

4. Examples

• ‘When I am there I am not just there for Jacob. I am there for the entire class.’(Højholt 2012, Røn Larsen 2011).

• Positions in social communities are collectively created in relation to general dynamics in these communities

• - how personal agency is interwoven with the ways social conflicts develop.

• agency becomes related to participation in conflictual social practice.

5. Conclusions

5. Conclusions

• - when the involved parties see themselves and each other as contributing to the ‘same but many-sided concern’ - the conflicts may lead to development of understanding

• - to understand personal meanings as related to situated inequality in relation to the social distribution of possibilities for taking part in and influencing different social contexts.