Encounters with diversity: Children's friendships and parental responses. (June 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Vincent, Carol; Neal, Sarah; Iqbal, Humera
• Is Part Of: Urban studies. Volume 54:Number 8(2017:Jun.)
• Page Start: 1974
• Page End: 1989
• Publication Date: 2017-06
• Subjects: diversity -- ethnicity -- friendship -- schools -- social class; 多样性、 -- 族裔、 -- 友谊、 -- 学校、 -- 社会阶层; Cities and towns -- Periodicals; City planning -- Periodicals; 307.1216
• DOI: 10.1177/0042098016634610
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0042-0980

Abstract

This paper reports on a project exploring the friendships of children and adults in 'super-diverse' (Vertovec, 2007) localities in London, England, examining whether and how friendships are made and maintained across ethnic and social class differences. The aim is to identify what friendships reveal about the nature and extent of ethnic and social divisions in contemporary multicultural society. Drawing on interviews with children and their parents, this paper analyses affective parental responses to their children's friendships, identifying instances where parents seek to manage these friendships. We identify the importance of the 'ease of similarity' for many parents concerning their children's friendships, and the relative lack of concrete practices amongst parents to support their children's friendships across difference. However, we also note parental support for living in super-diverse localities and children attending schools therein.