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The purpose of this paper is to consider the challenges, advantages and limits of ethnographical approaches to the study of parliament. Challenges in the study of political institutions emerge because they can be fast-changing, difficult to gain access to, have starkly contrasting public and private faces and, in the case of national parliaments, are intimately connected to rest of the nation.

Ethnography usually tends to be difficult to plan in advance, but especially so when parliament is the focus.

Research in parliament requires clear questions but an emergent approach for answering them – working out your assumptions, deciding on the most appropriate methods depending on what wish to find out, and continually reviewing progress. Its great strengths are flexibility, ability to encompass wider historical and cultural practices into the study, getting under the surface and achieving philosophical rigour. Rigour is partly achieved through reflexivity.

One implication of this is that not only will each study of parliament be different, because each is embedded in different histories, cultures, and politics, but the study of the same parliament will contain variations if a team is involved.

Ethnographical research is a social and political process of relating; interpreting texts, events and conversations; and representing the “other” as seen by observers.

Contrary to prevailing wisdom, international development does not either succeed or fail. It does both. With reference to case study material gleaned from working with both grant‐makers and international civil society organisations, this article critiques both the assumptions and organisation of development. Development initiatives create small islands of beneficial change for children but in general suffer from donor‐led managerial approaches, the dominance of upward accountability to Northern agencies, poor relationships and the tendency to both generalise and simplify. Globally, governments and civil society are failing to protect millions of vulnerable children and promote their participation in decision‐making. But better outcomes for children are possible. This article articulates the problems but also demonstrates how: (1) partnerships could be reoriented so that power relations are continually challenged; (2) planning mechanisms could be more focused and efficient; and (3) innovation, learning and reflective action could be promoted so that practice is appropriate to the context and therefore promotes better outcomes for children.

Many child‐focused civil society organisations (CSOs) working in Africa, Asia and South America have shifted from organising their work around children's needs to promoting their rights. The rights‐based frameworks they use are informed by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This article explores the value of global rights. Ethnographic studies about the lives of young people and their transition into adulthood point to diversity of ideas about childhood in different parts of the world, raising questions about whether the idea of universal child rights can accommodate such varied worldviews. Yet CSOs have often failed to take account of this diversity in the way they use rights frameworks. Research by anthropologists about children in three situations ‐ at work, on the move and facing violence ‐ is used here to reveal the problems caused if rights frameworks are used without sufficient understanding of context and complexity.

This article reviews the contents of the previous year's editions of the Journal of Children's Services (Volume 2, 2007), as requested by the Journal's editorial board. It draws out some of the main messages for how high‐quality scientific research can help build good childhoods in western developed countries, focusing on: the need for epidemiology to understand how to match services to needs; how research can build evidence of the impact of prevention and intervention services on child well‐being; what the evidence says about how to implement proven programmes successfully; the economic case for proven programmes; the urgency of improving children's material living standards; how to help the most vulnerable children in society; and, lastly, the task of measuring child well‐being.

Serious incidents of violent disruption within the national young-persons’ prison estate endanger offenders, staff and visitors and have a significant impact. The purpose of this paper is to explore the function of and factors influencing violent disruptive behaviour.

In total, 21 young people (n=21) with a history of violence in custody were administered semi-structured interviews to explore the reasons for their behaviour. The data were explored using thematic analysis.

Six themes were identified: attitude and propensity for violence, perceptions and intolerance of others, consequences of violent behaviour, the physical environment, previous indicators, and protective factors.

The study is reliant on self-report and thus may reflect biases. The presence of a recording device may have had an impact on responses. Logistical practicalities meant participants were approached via an intermediary which may have impacted on a willingness to participate.

Several practical implications are identified: cognitive skills programmes which encourage consequential thinking, perspective-taking, communication skills and exploring alternative problem-solving strategies are of value. Shouting through doors and windows is a major source of provocation and should be addressed. The induction process provides opportunities for equality-awareness work. Gang membership issues are a major cause of violence, and attitudes around this should be addressed. Building trust between staff and young people helps reduce problems. Systems to provide access to facilities and to provide support to cope with stress and isolation may be of value.

This study uses a qualitative approach to exploring young people’s views on prison violence. The findings reflect previous research but strengthen the perspective that violence in prison serves several purposes for those involved and that violence-reduction strategies must be multi-modal to be effective.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of media coverage on offenders convicted of occupational fraud and corruption in the UK. It examines the extent of media coverage and provides insights into the experiences of offenders.

The study is based upon interviews with 17 convicted offenders, and on a content analysis of one national and two regional newspapers in the UK.

The findings suggest that offenders convicted of occupational crime and corruption are more likely to experience media coverage than previously assumed and that personal digital criminal legacies create long-term labels which lead to economic strains and social fractures that hinder productive reintegration into society.

The research is limited by a small sample frame in the UK. Nevertheless, the findings suggest further research is required as they have important implications for privacy and rehabilitation.

In particular, offenders and their families need support in dealing with their personal digital criminal legacies, accessing their privacy rights and coping with the strains created by online stigmatisation. From a policy perspective, the existing regulatory framework that supports rehabilitation in the UK, especially the increasingly archaic Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, requires close examination and debate to ensure it is fit for the digital era. The findings also suggest that policies, practices and responsibilities of the public sector in employing offenders need to be examined.

It is a rare study of white-collar offenders after their release from prison. The findings are of relevance to criminal justice policy makers, rehabilitation services and academics.