In this final chapter I want to summarise my conclusions but also confirm a slightly different orientation for the sociological study of children’s agency. In doing so, I want to reduce much of the subtlety of the field into a set of blockages in, or myths of, current thinking, which, although being ‘misrepresentative’ of the field, nevertheless still provide a sort of default resource. I then want to identify some of the undercurrents of contemporary discussion in the field and particularly with respect to describing and mapping the leading currents and flows of children’s agency. This, then, provides the context for thinking further about childhood studies and the contribution of sociology to such an interdisciplinary field, and, finally, suggests a point of urgent discussion.

Five myths of childhood studies

There are currently five long-standing myths which circulate in the discussion of children and childhood. These are the myths of the individual child, of identity and difference, of homogeneous and static space, of unitary scale, and of the ontology of agency. I will discuss each briefly in turn.