Back to Search Start Over

The Good, The Bad and The Pacifier: Unsettling Accounts of Early Years Practice

Authors :
Whitmarsh, Judy
Source :
Journal of Early Childhood Research. 2008 6(2):145-162.
Publication Year :
2008

Abstract

In this article, interviews with eight managers and questionnaires from 75 practitioners are analysed to explore their perceptions of the role of pacifiers (or dummies) within the nursery. Managers and practitioners source their knowledge from the media, family/friends, and short professional speech and language courses; however, their perceptions of pacifiers derive from mainly contested research that has filtered into the public domain. This creates tensions between perceived parental rights to offer a child a pacifier, current UK guidelines and participants' own, often ambivalent, views. The article engages with Foucauldian concepts to explore how authoritative knowledge filters into everyday practice and to deconstruct relations of power within the early years setting.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1476-718X
Volume :
6
Issue :
2
Database :
ERIC
Journal :
Journal of Early Childhood Research
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
EJ821284
Document Type :
Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X08088675