Authors

• Central Union for Child Welfare

Keywords

child protection, children, children's rights, international agreements, knowledge (awareness), participation, social influence

Abstract

The survey studied knowledge and awareness of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in Finland. The survey also explored views on the implementation of consultation and participation of children. In addition, knowledge of the Central Union for Child Welfare was also investigated. The survey was conducted as personal interviews as part of the Omnibus survey.

Respondents were first asked if they had heard of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Next, respondents were asked to make statements about the Convention. Respondents were asked to answer yes or no depending on whether the listed statement was included in the Convention or not. These included whether the Convention obliges governments to inform citizens about it, whether it applies to all children under the age of 18, and whether the Convention reduces parents' responsibilities to care for their children. Next, the respondents were asked whether the consultation and participation of children and young people is well implemented in Finland. These included statements such as "children of kindergarten age are so young that there is no need to listen to their opinions" and "it is a good thing that schools have a student council as a channel for student participation". Finally, respondents' knowledge and awareness of the Central Union for Child Welfare was explored.

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age, occupational status, type of household, level of education, internet use, type of municipality, region, and age and number of children at home.