This Disertation explores activities, relations, and role of Children as well as social support in the area of Kebon Pala, Makassar District in East Jakarta. Children’s daily activities, children’s relationships with social environment, and children’s role are three core concepts of children’s development ecology perspectives as stated by Bronfenbrenner. The study aims to explore these ecology perspectives to reveal children’s social life. To achieve its aims, this study employed mixed methods, namely observation, group discussion with children of 10 to 17 years old, survey among children and the parents, as well as indepth interview with children and community leaders
The data showed that children’s daily activities were different by sex and family’s socio-economic status. However, the activities were not significantly different by age group. Children’s relationships with family members, extended family members, peers in school as well as in the neighborhood were consistently different by sex and socio-economics status of the family. Whereas, categorization of age group did not differentiate neither the children’s relationships with family nor extended family members nor neighbors. However, the latest categorization did differentiate children’s relationships with peers in school as well as in the neighborhood. Children’s role did not have significant difference by sex, age group and family socio-economic status.
The analysis shows there is no significant difference by sex, age group and family socio-economic status for the transaction of social support to survive. While social support transaction for development is different significantly by sex (boys are less than girls), and by family socio-economic status (SSE-1 < SSE-2 < SSE-3), also by age group. Transaction of social support to have protection is different by family socio-economic status (SSE1The quality of social support to survive is significantly different by sex (boys are less than girls), and by family socio-economic status (SSE-1< SSE-2< SSE-3), but not by age group. The quality of social support for development, to have protection as well as to participate is different significantly by family socio-economic status (SSE-1< SSE-2< SSE-3), but not significantly different by sex and by age group.
Path analysis shows children’s relationships, activities, family socio-economic status have direct influence towards social support for children. Whereas, children’s role and social relation of the family do not have direct social support for children. Children’s role indirectly influence towards social support of the children through children’s relationships, activities, and social relationships of the family. Social relation of the family has indirect influence towards social support of the children through childrens’s relationships.
The findings reveal the perspective of human development ecology as stated by Bronfenbrenner that social condition of children does not only influenced by environment but also by activities carried out by the children as well as the relationships to whom the children attached to.
The concept of ’children’s role is weak in the theory of ecology as stated by Bronfenbrenner. The weakness was identified from the empiricism process of the concept of ‘children’s role’. The study tries to pull the concept of ‘children’s role’ out of the concept ‘activities’ by exploring ‘active role of children’ (forwarding suggestion and responsibilities). However, since the concept of ‘active role of children’ conveys the meaning of ‘self sustainability’ then the influence of the concept towards social support is not visible.
Finally, the concept of activities and relationships of children emphasize the children as the self, subject, or active actor. Through both concepts the children are in the process of development, socialization, developing the sense of care, trust, help each others, developing social relationships in every social environment where they live in.
This study contributes to Sociology – especially Sociology of Children – by identifying that children as the actor through the concept of activities and relationships influence the social condition of the children. Moreover, the children’s social environment factor – especially family socio-economic status – influences children condition. Social relation of the family influences indirectly to the children’s social condition.
Outreaching and empowering children and the family needs to be carried out at the same time to increase the social condition of children and their family. The negligent to one of them (children or the family) hinders the process of outreach and empowering. |