The Finnish Society for Childhood Studies

The Finnish Society for Childhood Studies is a scientific, non-profit organization that aims to promote multi- and interdisciplinary research on childhood and children, and enhance collaboration between researchers working in the area. The Society was founded in 2008.

To pursue its aims, the Society arranges conferences, seminars and other events for researchers, policy-makers, professionals and for wider audience. The Society engages in close collaboration with other scientific organizations and institutes, e.g. in publishing and organizing research seminars.

The main event organized by the Society is the annual/bi-annual Childhood Studies –Conference that was organized for the first time in 2009 in Tampere, Finland.
 

Call for abstracts is now open!

Call for abstracts is now open to the next Conference on Childhood studies 6.-8. May 2026! Please visit submission page for more information: https://sites.uef.fi/childhood-conference-xi/abstract-submission/  

The International XI Conference on Childhood Studies Brings Together the Boundaries and Boundlessness of Childhood

The XI Conference on Childhood Studies, Childhood and Borders, will be held on 6–8 May 2026 at the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu. This internationally recognised conference is taking place for the eleventh time in Finland and for the first time in Joensuu. The event is organised by the Finnish Society for Childhood Studies and the University of Eastern Finland. Partners include SOS Children’s Village Finland and the Coordination Project on Children’s, Young People’s and Families’ Participation.

The conference highlights the diverse boundaries of childhood and opens a discussion on how interdisciplinarity and multiparadigmatic approaches can renew childhood studies. Its main aim is to bring together researchers from different disciplines, practitioners, and students. “It is precisely this diversity that makes childhood studies a vibrant and timely field capable of addressing the individual, communal, and societal aspects of childhood,” says Elina Weckström, PhD, Chair of the Finnish Society for Childhood Studies.

A Multidisciplinary Meeting Place

Childhood studies is inherently multidisciplinary. It transcends disciplinary boundaries and facilitates dialogue across sociology, law, history, education, health sciences, and the arts.

“The keynote presentations at the conference will examine childhood in contemporary society from a broad perspective. We will explore the theme of childhood and borders from the viewpoint of children’s migration, discuss methodological questions in childhood studies, and learn how digital, social, material, and ecological aspects come together in children’s contemporary environments,” explains Noora Heiskanen, Associate Professor and Chair of the Scientific Committee of the conference.

Multiparadigmatic Approaches as a Strength

The organisers emphasise that childhood studies brings together diverse research paradigms – qualitative and quantitative, ethnographic and statistical, empirical and theoretical, critical and practice-oriented.

Postdoctoral researcher Anna Kristiina Kokko, co-coordinating the conference with Elina Weckström, notes:

– Childhood cannot be captured by a single paradigm. Viewed methodologically and theoretically, childhood unites multiple disciplines and approaches. This makes childhood studies a field where different research traditions can meet, collide, and complement each other.

The conference theme, Childhood and Borders, opens precisely this type of multiparadigmatic discussion: to what extent are boundaries socially or culturally defined, to what extent do they arise from legislation or research ethics, and how can childhood studies conceptually and methodologically transcend these boundaries?

Research Meets Practice – and Practice Meets Research

Childhood studies has strong connections to practice. Its multidisciplinary nature is reflected in the participation of professionals from social work, education, healthcare, the arts, and policy. Diverse perspectives enrich the research and enable genuine cross-disciplinary dialogue between researchers and professionals working with children and young people.

During the conference, a Finnish-language symposium for project practitioners will allow for the consideration of development work alongside scientific research. The conference welcomes participants from both research and development fields as well as from child and family services. Policymakers and students are also warmly invited, says Laura Ortju, PhD, Special Expert at the Finnish National Agency for Education, involved in organising the conference.

Children’s Art in the Conversation

The conference will highlight children’s perspectives through art. In collaboration with the Joensuu Children’s Cultural Centre, children’s artwork will be presented at the event. Visual artists Tuija Hirvonen-Puhakka, Tiina Miettinen, and Johanna Turunen will implement a community art exhibition in which children’s and young people’s works visually and experientially open a dialogue on how they perceive and cross boundaries themselves. In addition, children and young people will be visible and heard in the conference’s side programme. Participants will enjoy performances by the Joensuu Conservatory String Orchestra and the youth folk dance groups of Nuorisoseura Motora.

Conference webpage: XI Conference on Childhood Studies - XI Conference on Childhood Studies 

See you in Joensuu!