Determining the Perceptions of Children towards "Being a Child": Example for Metaphor Analysis

The ‘childhood’ concept is perceived differently in every society and this perception can change over time. Although it is difficult to make a universal definition, childhood can be defined as a stage that requires a safe... [ view full abstract ]

The ‘childhood’ concept is perceived differently in every society and this perception can change over time. Although it is difficult to make a universal definition, childhood can be defined as a stage that requires a safe environment for playing games and growing up before adulthood. There are a lot of studies conducted on the perception of childhood. However, there are no studies evaluating the ‘childhood’ concept from children's point of view. This study aims to investigate the perceptions of children towards “being a child” through metaphors and drawings. In this study, the phenomenology design of qualitative research method was utilized. The convenience sampling method was used to determine the participants for this study who were composed of 47 preschool (5- and 6- year old) children and 50 primary school (8- and 9- year old) children. In order to collect data, a form was used in which the children were asked to complete the following statements; “Being achild is like ………… Because ……………”, similarly the participants were asked to reflect their ideas through drawing. In the analysis and interpretation of the data, the content analysis method was used. The metaphors elicited from children were classified into categories based on their common features. In this respect, “playing games, juniority/eldership and adult manipulation” were most frequent ones among the categories of preschool children’s metaphors towards being a child. On the other hand, “being active, being free, and being beautiful” were most frequent categories of primary school children. It has been identified that children at the preschool period made physical references more frequently in their metaphors about being a child, while primary school children used psychological references more frequently. The results of the study are in parallel with the developmental tasks of the children’s development period.

Keywords: being a child, metaphor, drawing, qualitative research