The experience and expression of spirituality in childhood: A systematic review and qualitative synthesis of the literature

Abstract

Given the current education and care context that views spirituality as a part of the holistic development of the child, it was timely to investigate extant literature in the area. Specifically, the researchers conducted a systematic review and qualitative synthesis of literature that responded to the research question, ‘how do young children (0-8 years) experience and express their spirituality.’ Spirituality is not unanimously defined in the field of education and care. Research suggests that the term spirituality, once synonymous with religion, is now commonly understood as an innate capacity of the human person, experienced and expressed in a myriad of ways, and a key component to human thriving. The systematic review elicited 53 papers within the boundaries of the inclusion criteria and four themes emerged, namely; Describing and measuring spirituality (13); Spiritual experience and expression in childhood (17); Explicit teaching of spirituality (7); and, Religious and cultural education (16). The qualitative synthesis of the themes led to the development of key findings regarding the way that young children’s spirituality is experienced and expressed. In particular, this research presents two significant contributions. The first is the recognised need for spirituality to be defined for the purpose of future research specifically in education and care, and a definition is proposed by the researchers. Secondly, the review establishes the need for a spiritual framework that informs educators and other professionals on ways to promote young children’s spirituality for holistic development and learning.