Childhood and Youth Studies Research Focus Group

The Childhood and Youth Studies Research Focus Group, as part of a broader Childhood and Youth Studies Initiative, new Minor in Childhood and Youth Studies, and proposed new Ph.D. Emphasis at UCSB, takes an interdisciplinary perspective on childhood in literature, culture, history, media, and society. We suggest that childhood is best approached methodologically from the vantage point of interdisciplinarity and diverse global traditions, while considering the historical, social, and media construction of childhood mediated by adults, as well as how children contribute to the performance of childhood. Since 2022, the ongoing Childhood and Youth Studies (previously called Global Childhood Media) research collaboration has examined how the study of childhood and youth in literature, culture, history, media, and society can be illuminated by a variety of disciplines, robust theorization around childhood studies, and a global perspective.

Conveners:

Peter Bloom, Film and Media Studies
pbloom@filmandmediastudies.ucsb.edu

Sabine Frühstück, East Asian Languages and Cultural Studies
fruhstuc@ucsb.edu

Lisa Jacobson, History
jacobson@history.ucsb.edu

Dominique Jullien, French and Italian
djullien@frit.ucsb.edu

Sara Pankenier Weld, Germanic and Slavic Studies
saraweld@ucsb.edu