We describe an ontological approach to childhood studies that we refer to as Childhood Ethics. This involves an interdisciplinary hermeneutic orientation towards examining the morally meaningful dimensions of matters that affect young people. We draw on our empirical research with young people from 3‐ to 17‐years old, examining their experiences in a diversity of contexts and geographical settings. Our investigations challenge dominant binary conceptions of young people along lines of decisional in/capacity and im/maturity. We argue for a view of children as active agents with meaningful relational engagements and participation interests and capacities and outline corresponding implications for research and practice.

中文翻译：

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童年伦理：儿童研究的本体论进展

我们描述了一种儿童学研究的本体论方法，我们称之为儿童伦理学。这涉及到跨学科的诠释学取向，旨在研究影响年轻人的事情在道德上有意义的方面。我们对3至17岁的年轻人进行了实证研究，考察了他们在不同背景和地理环境中的经历。我们的研究根据决策能力/能力和成熟度/不成熟度对年轻人的主流二元观念提出了挑战。我们主张将儿童视为具有有意义的关系参与，参与兴趣和能力的积极行动者，并概述对研究和实践的相应含义。