Examination of Child Participation Awareness of Individuals Working in Different Occupational Groups

This study aims to determine the awareness of child participation among individuals from different professions. The descriptive survey model, a quantitative research method, was employed in the study. A total of 480 people who reside in Kâğıthane district of Istanbul province and work in education, law, health, and design, selected by stratified sampling method, voluntarily participated in the study. “The personal information” form created by the researcher and “The Child Participation Awareness Scale” were used as data collection tools. The data were obtained by obtaining permission from the institutions and conducting face-to-face interviews with the individuals. As a result of the research, the level of child participation awareness of individuals in different professions is distributed into design, education, health, and law. Due to the fact that the individuals participating in the research were mostly in auxiliary occupational groups and had low levels of awareness about Children's Rights, the awareness level of occupational groups was found to be different from what was expected. In general, the awareness found in the sub-dimension of "decoration in participation" showed that in today's technological age, children's drawings are used without permission or children are used as decorations in activities.