Multiple Lenses, Multiple Images: Perspectives on the Child across Time, Space, and Disciplines (review)

Academic interest on the notion of childhood has grown in recent years. Multiple Lenses, Multiple Images: Perspectives of the Child across Time, Space and Discipline is not only a manifestation of this emerging interest, but it also represents the various disciplines engaged in this expanding field. The wide range of critical perspectives includes sociological, historical, cultural, medical, legal, psychological, and a literary approach, which make this an ideal text to complement courses at the advanced undergraduate or graduate level in various disciplines.

The authors provide a multitude of disciplinary approaches while accounting for the effects of time and space on how children are perceived and how conceptions of childhood facilitate particular social projects. For example, the chapters vividly illustrate the ambiguity of "childhood" and the diverse ways in which children are understood, what their needs are, and the various agencies which have sought to articulate these needs. This book demonstrates the importance of pursuing research that questions the meaning and utility of concepts of childhood as they manifest in particular contexts.

As indicated in the title, this collection hinges on themes of space, time and discipline. Regrettably, the table of contents is not divided using these topic headings, nor is there any other obvious logic to how the book is organized, often making it difficult to decipher the focus of each chapter. The concept of time and space are used as analytical tools that reoccur throughout the text, and disciplinary perspectives are used to frame the focus, as well as provide the site of criticism of some chapters.

The first two chapters of this collection are historical, Adriana Benzaquén's (Chapter 1) work delineates the different typologies of children through exploring the ways that different types of expert knowledge contributed to the objective of "knowing" the child. Anne McGillivary (Chapter 2) focuses on the differential treatment of children in the law over time with a particular attention to the changing relationship between state and family. Chapter 3 (Naomi Sokoloff) diverges from the above chapters by utilizing literature as an analytical tool to discuss and question the processes by which adults represent children in literary text. In chapter 4 (Susan Herrington), there is a return to historical analysis with a focus on space. Herrington examines the role of the schoolyard in organizing the social environment and paying particular attention to the relationship between the development of children in informal sites like playgrounds. Chapter 5 represents another shift in that it examines a particular group of children. In this chapter, Marci Hanson looks at how societal images of disabilities are reflected and how they shape children's images of disabled children. Chapters 6, 7 and 8 (Michael Lamb, Jayanthi Mistry and Virginia Diez, Daniel Scott) use policy analysis and alternative meanings of childhood and spirituality to collectively challenge the assumptions of psychology from a socio-cultural perspective. Chapter 6 focuses on the problems with policy recommendations, given the diversity in children's environment and cultural upbringings. Chapter 7 provides a theoretical explanation for different understandings of childhood, while Chapter 8 examines the potential for children to be spiritual beings which questions developmental theories of maturity and comprehension. The last chapter of this collection questions the legitimacy of treating children as appendices to a family unit rather than independent beings, a theme that runs through the other chapters. Lastly, John Willinsky concludes with a nice chapter summary of the text themes and issues. It ties in the importance of critically thinking about perceptions that dominate discussions of children and stresses the importance of considering the individual realities of children.

A recurring theme in this text is the importance of recognizing the differences among children and their childhood experiences. In various ways the authors critically assess the idea of a unified conception of the child as well as scrutinize the institutions that contribute to creating these particular images. Although this text offers...