Check your understanding of some of the key issues involved in research and consultation with children and young people by answering these questions. Feedback is provided for each answer option.

1. What is ‘action research’?

   1.   ?    Research which aims to benefit the participants.
   2.   ?    Research which assists the participants in their personal and political activities as part of an ongoing process.
   3.   ?    The study of children’s actions.
   4.   ?    A form of research designed for use with marginalised groups.

2. A questionnaire study of 100 nine and ten year olds found that 73 of them enjoyed playing video games in their spare time. The researchers conclude from this that 73% of nine to ten year old children enjoy playing video games. Is the method used here:

   1.   ?    Inductive
   2.   ?    Deductive

3. When negotiating consent for a research project with children, you should:

   1.   ?    Explain the project to the parents and the children at the start of the study, and then obtain written consent from all parties before proceeding.
   2.   ?    Explain the project to the parents at the start of the study and obtain written consent from them. Negotiate oral consent with the children on a day-by-day basis as the study progresses.
   3.   ?    Explain the project to the parents and the children at the start of the study, and give them the opportunity to opt out if they wish. Negotiate oral consent with the children on a day-by-day basis as the study progresses.
   4.   ?    Forget about the parents and focus on obtaining informed consent from the children.

4. You have designed a questionnaire for use in a piece of research with children. What should you do before distributing the questionnaire?

   1.   ?    Show it to your supervisors/superiors and ask them what they think of it.
   2.   ?    Show it to your colleagues and ask them what they think of it.
   3.   ?    Show it to some children from your chosen research group and ask them what they think of it.

5. You are negotiating consent with a group of five and six year-old children. You already have the written consent of their parents. What techniques would you use with the children?

   1.   ?    Ask them to sign a consent form. Read out the form if they cannot read it themselves.
   2.   ?    Talk to them about the research, explaining the aims, the methods, what you want from them and how the research might affect them. Once they have absorbed this information, ask them whether they would like to participate or not.
   3.   ?    Design an information leaflet explaining the research in very simple, clear terms with large text and illustrative pictures. Leave this with them, and on your next visit, ask them whether they would like to participate or not.
   4.   ?    In your first session, explain to the children what consent means, and why you need it. Then use your research skills to consult the children about how best to negotiate their consent in a meaningful way. As far as possible, act upon their suggestions.

6. You are conducting a consultation with children aged eleven to sixteen about healthy eating. You have divided your participants into six groups of between eight and ten children, and have carried out focus group discussions with two of these groups. However, a number of the children have seemed uninterested or unwilling to contribute to the discussions. What could you do with the remaining four groups to solve this problem?

   1.   ?    Accept that some children do not want to speak, and that this is their right.
   2.   ?    Change the group allocation – e.g. divide them into smaller groups of four or five; ask them to allocate themselves to groups so that they can be with their friends; etc.
   3.   ?    Make the activities more interesting – e.g. give the children cameras; make a graffiti wall; ask them to invent a story; etc.
   4.   ?    Ask the children themselves what they think is causing the problem, and what you could do to make the discussions work better.