elpais.com
Post-Pandemic Shift in Greetings: Consent and Child Safety
Changes in greeting customs across cultures are highlighted, focusing on the post-pandemic shift towards verbal greetings, particularly among children who are taught about consent and personal boundaries by pediatricians to prevent abuse.
- What factors contributed to the decline in physical greetings, and how does this relate to broader concerns about child safety?
- Children born during the pandemic integrated new greeting norms, prioritizing verbal greetings over physical contact. This shift reflects broader changes in social interactions, emphasizing consent and personal boundaries.
- How have societal norms surrounding greetings changed, and what are the implications for children's understanding of personal boundaries?
- Spain greets with handshakes or kisses, China with a handshake and bow, and Morocco varies by relationship, using a hand on the heart formally or kisses informally. Post-pandemic, physical greetings like hugs and kisses decreased due to hygiene and infection concerns, leading to a rise in verbal greetings.
- What are the long-term societal effects of educating children about consent and personal space, and how might this impact future dynamics between adults and children?
- Pediatricians now discuss consent with children, teaching them their bodies belong to them and they control physical contact. This approach aims to prevent abuse by empowering children to set limits, reflecting growing awareness of child sexual abuse within trusted circles.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The framing emphasizes the importance of children's consent to physical touch, particularly in the context of preventing abuse. The inclusion of the pediatrician's quote and the statistics on abuse within the child's close circle reinforces this focus. The headline, if there was one, would likely further emphasize this perspective.
Bias by Omission
The article focuses on changing greetings due to the pandemic and the importance of children's consent regarding physical contact. However, it omits discussion of cultural variations in greetings beyond the examples provided (Spain, China, Morocco). While this is understandable given space constraints, a broader overview of global greeting customs might have provided more complete context and avoided potential overgeneralization.
Sustainable Development Goals
The article highlights the increasing importance of teaching children about consent and bodily autonomy, which directly contributes to gender equality by empowering children to set boundaries and reject unwanted physical contact. This is crucial in preventing sexual abuse, a significant issue disproportionately affecting girls. The pediatrician's quote emphasizes the need to respect children's choices regarding physical affection, promoting a culture of consent from a young age.