Wednesday, 14 March 2012
Week 2: 'to crib or not to crib'
In class today an issue was raised about child liberty and whether babies should be placed in cribs or not? The article being 'to crib or not to crib' raises concerns about placing babies in cribs to sleep. The argument being that cribs restrict the babies movements and don't allow them to make choices of their own, as the article states; "infant beds are designed to restrict the baby to bed". The article also states that the child is dependent on the parents to place him/her in the crib which also means he/she is dependent on the parents to get them out which usually means the child has to cry to get the attention of the parents. I guess the issues here are is it ethical to restrict your baby in a crib or should they have the right to sleep on a low bed where they can freely choose whether to stay in the bed or not and can have the ability to access his/her toys when he/she pleases. I guess there is no real right answer here as no parent would want to make their child feel restricted or locked up, parents don't usually think about this issue when they buy a crib as majority of society accepts the use of cribs. On the other side I beleive cribs are made in order to keep the child safe from harm while the parents are sleeping as the reality is a young infant is always going to be dependent on the parent as they don't have the mobility to get around by themselves and if a parent were sleeping while the baby is not restricted in some way the baby could get hurt.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
if we made the environment safe then the baby would not get hurt, perhaps? Are cribs necessary because our environments are essentially designed as adult spaces and not as children's spaces? How does this affect a child's right to participation and being treated as equal and interdependent to adults?
ReplyDeleteI don't think its the environment around the baby that could be unsafe as usually baby's bedrooms are safe places for children. However I do aggree that alot of the environment is designed for adults by adults. At the same time though I think if a baby were in a completely safe environment on a bed that was not 'caged' the baby could still roll off and be helpless on the floor. I guess it depends on the age of the baby. If you have a baby that is not yet crawling the baby is going to be largely dependent on the adult to get around as it is, so whether the baby is in a crib or not he/she still needs to cry in order to get mum or dad. On the other hand if a baby were crawling I think possibly a crib is not nessessary as the baby is less likely to hurt itself by hitting the floor. But in saying this I still think a crib is nessessary as the baby may not choose to stay in bed and will therefore not sleep which affects their own wellbeing and the parents wellbeing. I think parents need to make choices for babies in the best interests of their needs in regards to health and safety. Yes I beleive children should have choice but not too much choice to the point where a baby could not be getting any sleep at all... Such a hard topic though!! I would actually like to know your opinion Lea? :)
ReplyDelete