ABSTRACT
In contemporary Cambodia, children are socially constructed as vulnerable, physically and mentally undeveloped persons, in constant need of surveillance and management. Correspondingly, childhood is regarded as the life stage during which children grow and mature in accordance with their inborn attributes and aptitudes so as to assume the position of a socially and economically valuable family member and citizen upon coming of age. This chapter explores the culturally mediated definitions of childhood and youth in Cambodia, and the impacts of such definitions on children’s and young people’s everyday lives and relationships. It also examines the ways and reasons for which ideas of childhood and youth are shifting against the backdrop of rapid socio-economic change.
