Theorising in Educational Children’s Rights Research

This systematic review examines how theory is used in educational research on children's rights published since the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child. The authors found that children's rights research often lacks critical engagement with theory, and researchers tend to rely on previous research literature combined with policy or law rather than formal theoretical frameworks. The review highlights a paradox: children's rights research appears both theoretically abundant and deficient at the same time. Theory in this field mainly serves two purposes: defining what is being studied and supporting analysis.

Key points

• Children's rights research shows a lack of criticality and reluctance to interrogate or challenge dominant views
• Alignment with established theoretical approaches is uncommon in educational children's rights research
• Previous research literature is often positioned as theory, mostly combined with policy, law or an established theory
• Main functions of theory are to construct the object of study and to provide analysis support
• Some uses of theory appear to be more powerful than others

Limitations

This is a methodological review of how theory is used in research; it does not evaluate the actual well-being outcomes for children or test whether children's rights interventions work in practice. The document does not provide empirical evidence about children's experiences or the effectiveness of rights-based approaches.