The Changing Value of the Child – A Review of the Literature Regarding Social Perceptions of Sick and Dying Children

Abstract

AbstractThis article reviews the literature pertaining to the changing value of the child in England since the 19th century, highlighting the relative policy neglect of contemporary sick and dying children. The review discusses the relationship between the value of the child, social constructions of childhood and social policy. The review demonstrates how the value of the child has altered from one of utility to a contemporary position of sacralisation, illustrated by mortality statistics as a measure of associated policy impact. However, large reductions in mortality rates conceal the more complex picture of contemporary child health. Children die each year from life‐limiting and life‐threatening disorders. Moreover, technological developments increasingly allow children to live longer with such conditions, albeit with ever more complex ill health. Such children are therefore dying over protracted periods of time. However, they are largely absent from policy, which tends towards standardised outcome measures which may not reflect the needs of this minority group. Therefore, although contemporary constructions of childhood focus upon sacralisation, reflecting psychological value to parents and society, the most vulnerable child members of society remain neglected in policy and service provision.