Considering children and health literacy: a theoretical approach.
The theoretical approaches of Paulo Freire, Jean Piaget, and Lev Vygotsky frame the consideration of children and health literacy. This article includes a general discussion of literacy from the Freirian perspective. A definition of health literacy is then presented; first, the established meaning is introduced, but then a Freirian extension is proposed. Next, the theories of cognitive development by Piaget and Vygotsky are discussed, and examples related to children's health literacy are given. Finally, there is a discussion of why it is important to encourage and enable health literacy among children and adolescents.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health, Behavior and Society, 624 N Broadway, 745, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. dborzeko@jhsph.edu
Dina L G
DL
Borzekowski
D000293:Adolescent; D001364:Awareness; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000517:prevention & control; D003071:Cognition; D032882:Comprehension; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D040361:Healthy People Programs; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D017145:Models, Educational; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010358:Patient Participation; D011209:Power, Psychological; D013850:Thinking; D014481:United States