Abstract
Abstract Children’s rights are set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This systematic literature review aimed to investigate children’s views of children’s rights, at a broad level. Nine papers were included, from a range of countries and contexts. They all accessed the views of children and young people (aged up to 18 years). A content analysis was carried out using a recursive process of hybrid aggregative-configurative synthesis, and themes within children’s views and factors that may affect these were identified. These were ‘awareness of rights’, ‘value placed on (importance of) rights’, ‘impact of having/not having rights fulfilled’, ‘realisation and respect of rights’, ‘equality of rights’, ‘identifying and categorising of rights’, and ‘factors that may affect children’s views’. These were developed into a progression of rights realisation and implications for practice and further research were considered.
Highlights
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child sets out rights of every child, consisting of 54 Articles which include civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights for all children (Save the Children, n.d.-b; unicef, 2005; United Nations, 1989)
Whilst this review does not take a specific focus on the participation principle, often related to Articles 12–17, it does relate to the rationale of this review which has a focus upon children’s views of their rights
The present review aims to identify and synthesise findings from a range of primary research studies to present a view upon children’s views of children’s rights, and as such includes research from different countries, ages, groups and level of exposure to children’s rights
Summary
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (uncrc) sets out rights of every child, consisting of 54 Articles which include civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights for all children (Save the Children, n.d.-b; unicef, 2005; United Nations, 1989). Further to the specific Articles of the uncrc, there are four overarching core principles: of non-discrimination, devotion to the best interests of the child, the rights to life, survival and development, and respect for the views of the child (often referenced as participation or “children’s voice”) (United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, 2003; Woods and Bond, 2014). Quennerstedt (2010: 633) argues that these have a hampering effect and suggests ‘constructing what children’s rights are about from a general human rights language of civil, political and social rights will form a better base for research’ Since the adoption of the uncrc, the principles have frequently been divided into three groups (often known as the 3 Ps), of provision, protection and participation (Hammarberg, 1990; Thomas, 2011). Quennerstedt (2010: 633) argues that these have a hampering effect and suggests ‘constructing what children’s rights are about from a general human rights language of civil, political and social rights will form a better base for research’
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