Where is the child? A discursive exploration of the positioning of children in research on mental-health-promoting interventions.

Abstract

The present study explores the discursive positioning of children in research articles on mental-health-promoting interventions. The questions under investigation are: are children positioned as active or passive agents, are children's health and wellbeing contextualised, and if so how? How is the child perceived; that is, how are age, gender, socioeconomic status, family structure, dis/ability, and so on accounted for? We found that the positioning of the child as passive and formed by adults prevails; health is largely individualised and decontextualised in that it is depicted as being contingent on the person's own capabilities. However, there are instances in which children are positioned as active subjects, their opinions are in focus, and their health and wellbeing are connected to social relations and context. We propose a more active discussion about how children and wellbeing are conceptualised in the outlining, implementation and research of public health interventions. Moreover, children--just like adults--should be increasingly regarded as service users who are entitled to have a say in matters that concern them.