Young children's meaning-making about the causes of illness within the family context : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
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Date
2013
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Massey University
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Abstract
With the current prioritising of child health promotion, practitioners in health, education, and
social services are facing the challenge of providing effective health education programmes for
young children. Appreciation of the role that families play in young children’s meaning-making
about the causes of illness is likely to assist practitioners to reach this goal. To date, researchers
have largely sought to determine children’s understanding at various stages of cognitive
development rather than exploring how children might acquire, process, and share their
knowledge within particular social contexts. However, attention is increasingly turning to
sociocultural aspects of children’s learning and development, and the need to explore the various
ways in which children’s knowledge of health and illness is acquired in everyday contexts.
Adopting a socioconstructivist perspective of children’s learning and development, and using a
narrative methodology, this study sought to identify the ways in which young children’s illness
causality concepts are embedded in the sociocultural context of the family. In-depth interviews
were undertaken with five four-year-old children, their parents/guardians, sibling/s aged five to
nine years and two other family members (29 participants in total). Participants reflected a
diversity of cultural communities, spiritual orientations, and family structure. To aid the
elicitation of young children’s narrative accounts of illness causality, children were invited to
create a storybook about ‘getting sick’ utilising art materials and photographs of children
experiencing illness. A social interactional approach was then employed to interpret participants’
narratives.
Findings indicate that preschoolers draw heavily on their family contexts in their meaning-making
about the causes of illness. Furthermore, young children’s illness causality constructions are
significantly influenced by the particular illness experiences, illness prevention messages and
behavioural rules within their families. Consequently, researchers are encouraged to further
explore the social construction of children’s knowledge, and practitioners are urged to utilise
children’s existing understandings and associated family practices as the context for children’s
learning about health and well-being. By viewing family members as essential partners in the
education of young children, practitioners may be better placed to develop effective health
education programmes and provide enhanced psychosocial support for young children and their
families.
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Keywords
Illness causality, Children's perceptions, Illness in family, Child psychology, Cognitive development