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Not Raising a “Bubble Kid”: Farm Parents'Attitudes and Practices Regarding the Employment, Training and Supervision of Their Children
Author(s) -
Neufeld Steven,
Wright Sue Marie,
Gaut Jolene
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
the journal of rural health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.439
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1748-0361
pISSN - 0890-765X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1748-0361.2002.tb00877.x
Subject(s) - credibility , psychological intervention , work (physics) , coaching , best practice , psychology , medical education , order (exchange) , medicine , public relations , nursing , business , political science , engineering , mechanical engineering , law , psychotherapist , finance
This article explores farm parentś attitudes and practices regarding the employment, training and supervision of their children among a sample of 24 farm couples from southeastern Washington state. The goal was to gain a greater understanding of parental attitudes and practices in order to devise appropriate and meaningful efforts to improve the safety of children and adolescents involved in farm work. Demographic data regarding the farm families and their farm safety practices were collected through a short questionnaire, and parental attitudes and practices regarding the employment, training and supervision of their children were explored through open‐ended, semi‐structured interviews. The results suggest that farm parents have developed a logical and consistent set of beliefs and attitudes regarding the employment, training, and supervision of their children that is based in part on the belief that farm work is highly beneficial to their childreńs development. Safety interventions to reduce childhood farm injuries will have to acknowledge farm work as important and beneficial for children in order to maintain legitimacy and credibility. Nevertheless, because farm parentś practices regarding their childrenńs employment reflect cultural beliefs and values regarding children and child‐rearing, some recommended safety guidelines will be difficult to implement.