Peer-reviewed article
Rethinking participation: Exploring children’s power relations and emotions in Child Protection Services
Samita Wilson ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This conceptual article examines how children participate in Child Protection Services, arguing that Western participation models overlook important emotional and cultural factors. Drawing on research with Pakistani-Norwegian children, the authors show how bicultural identities, family obligations, and concepts of honour shape whether children engage with protection services. The article calls for approaches that recognize children's emotions, power relations, and diverse communication styles rather than treating participation as a simple ladder of involvement.
Key points
- Prevailing participation models prioritize verbal expression and formal decision-making while overlooking children's everyday experiences and interdependent power relations
- Bicultural identities, family obligations, and culturally bound notions of honour inform children's choices to engage or disengage with CPS
- Emotions such as guilt and shame profoundly affect children's willingness to participate in protection processes
- Child participation should be understood as relational and context-sensitive rather than as a static right or linear ladder of engagement
- Practitioners need to recognize diverse modes of communication and the performative nature of emotions in CPS interactions
Limitations
As a conceptual article drawing on one qualitative study, this work does not test whether alternative participation approaches actually improve outcomes for children in protection services. The findings reflect experiences in one specific context (Pakistani-Norwegian families) and may not generalize to other cultural settings or CPS systems.
Abstract
Abstract This conceptual article rethinks children’s participation in Child Protection Services (CPS) by foregrounding the relational, sociocultural, and emotional dimensions that shape how children participate in CPS processes. It critiques prevailing normative participation models, which are often grounded in Western, individualistic notions of autonomy and voice, for tending to prioritize verbal expression and formal decision-making while overlooking children’s everyday experiences and interdependent power relations. Drawing on insights from a qualitative study with Pakistani-Norwegian children in CPS, the article shows how factors such as bicultural identities, family obligations, and culturally bound notions of honour inform children’s choices to engage or disengage with CPS. Emotions are central, as feelings of guilt or shame can profoundly affect children’s willingness to speak or act. Rather than interpreting child participation as a static right or a linear “ladder” of engagement, the article advocates a relational and context-sensitive approach that acknowledges children’s evolving capacities, emotions, and sociocultural realities. It calls on practitioners to recognize the fluidity of power and the performative nature of emotions, and to adopt strategies that accommodate diverse modes of communication. Ultimately, expanding these understandings can make CPS more responsive, inclusive, and effective in safeguarding children’s wellbeing.