Genealogy of Children’s Literature Research from a Methodological Point of View

 
 

Maktabifard* Y. Mansourian*^*

Tarbiat Moalem University of Tehran
 
Abstract                              
Traces of research about children’s literature can be found in various disciplines. Obviously, regarding the subject and research questions, each study employs a different approach and method. In the current study in order to illustrate an overall picture of research on children’s literature, 164 dissertations and theses were identified and their abstracts were evaluated. Among 164 identified items, 40 adopted qualitative approaches, 48 used quantitative approaches, 12 employed mixed methods and 51 used library and documentary methods. Moreover, 13 dissertations were developed based on translation, bibliography and rewriting of some old texts. Until now, most of the dissertations on children’s literature have been conducted in the library and information studies departments. In contrast, some disciplines including Persian literature and Education paid less attention to this area. While these fields mainly have various subfields, nevertheless, the number of dissertations in this area has been increasing and in the last decade it has reached its climax of 72 dissertations. Seven categories were identified in this content analysis; among them survey and criticism of children’s literary works (such as poems, fictions, etc.) are the most popular topics in children’s literature research. This result also showed a link between research methods and popular research topics in this area. Finally, it can be concluded that more than being a new and particular research method, this area needs thoroughness in the application of existing methods, as the topics in these studies are immensely diverse with various aspects and each of them requires a specific method to address the issues.
 
 
*  Assistant Prof. in Library Science & Information,  RoyaMaktabi@gmail.com
**  Associate Prof. in Library Science & Information,  y.mansourian@gmail.com