Bristol University Press
14 Paying for Childcare
Abstract
Here, I make the case that each member of society can be expected to do better if more resources are dedicated to child rearing. This is for two reasons; first, it benefits everyone during their life stage as children. Moving resources towards children, and changing norms to be more child friendly, can be expected to benefit everyone, because childhood is a particularly significant part of a person’s life. It matters instrumentally – having good childhood is predictive of a good adulthood – and intrinsically, because people have a strong attachment to their childhood years. Second, it makes the project of raising children more attractive and this option benefits both parents and those who do not become parents.
Abstract
Here, I make the case that each member of society can be expected to do better if more resources are dedicated to child rearing. This is for two reasons; first, it benefits everyone during their life stage as children. Moving resources towards children, and changing norms to be more child friendly, can be expected to benefit everyone, because childhood is a particularly significant part of a person’s life. It matters instrumentally – having good childhood is predictive of a good adulthood – and intrinsically, because people have a strong attachment to their childhood years. Second, it makes the project of raising children more attractive and this option benefits both parents and those who do not become parents.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- Acknowledgements vi
- Introduction vii
-
Children and Moral Theory
- The Aims of a Moral Theory 3
- What is a Child? 9
-
A Distributive Theory for Children
- The Currency of Children’s Justice 17
- Welfare across the Lifespan 31
- Priority, Not Equality, of Welfare 43
-
Perfectionism and Upbringing
- The Case against Neutrality 55
- Understanding Perfectionism 67
- The Implications of Perfectionism 79
-
The Rights and Duties of Parents
- The Project View of Parenting 97
- Distributing Parental Duties 111
- Perfectionism and Parenting 123
- Beyond Parents: Collective Duties to Children 135
-
Distributive Implications
- Children’s Distributive Outcomes: Equality of Opportunity? 149
- Paying for Childcare 159
- Conclusion 171
- Bibliography 175
- Index 187
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- Acknowledgements vi
- Introduction vii
-
Children and Moral Theory
- The Aims of a Moral Theory 3
- What is a Child? 9
-
A Distributive Theory for Children
- The Currency of Children’s Justice 17
- Welfare across the Lifespan 31
- Priority, Not Equality, of Welfare 43
-
Perfectionism and Upbringing
- The Case against Neutrality 55
- Understanding Perfectionism 67
- The Implications of Perfectionism 79
-
The Rights and Duties of Parents
- The Project View of Parenting 97
- Distributing Parental Duties 111
- Perfectionism and Parenting 123
- Beyond Parents: Collective Duties to Children 135
-
Distributive Implications
- Children’s Distributive Outcomes: Equality of Opportunity? 149
- Paying for Childcare 159
- Conclusion 171
- Bibliography 175
- Index 187
