‘Mature’ and ‘Immature’ Death Concepts: Epistemic Injustice and Young Children's Sense‐Making of Death and Dying

Most research in Death Studies focuses on adult perspectives. Even when children are the intended focus, this research often remains adult‐centred due to the dominance of developmental psychology. A key concept underpinning this approach is the ‘mature death concept’ (MDC), a normative framework that assumes children's understanding of death will gradually develop along a universal trajectory as they grow older. This assumption shapes both qualitative and quantitative research, and in death education, it positions the adult teacher as the guide, facilitator or mediator, tasked with helping children acquire this mature understanding. In this paper, we examine the theoretical origins and implications of the MDC for two reasons. First, it risks preventing adults from taking children's ‘own’, often labelled ‘immature’, ideas about death seriously—a form of epistemic injustice. Second, we argue that these ‘immature’ understandings should not be seen as deficits, but rather as meaningful in their own right. They offer alternative ways of thinking that challenge the binaries already embedded in the MDC, such as human/animal, animate/inanimate, soul/body, adult/child. We ask: What can adults learn from children's so‐called ‘primitive’ ideas about death and dying? And what dominant discourses continue to position children as too young, naïve, or unprepared to contribute meaningfully to this area of knowledge? In response, we explore the philosophical and theoretical foundations that have historically excluded children from serious consideration in death research. Finally, we give some examples of engaging with children's perspectives differently, thereby signalling some important new directions for research and practice in death education.