A changing view of children, accelerated by the Convention of the Rights of the Child (UN in Convention on the rights of the child, UN Doc. A/RES/44/25, 1989, http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/pdf/crc.pdf) has shifted the landscape of child and family research over the last few decades. Once viewed with low credibility and operating outside the interpretive framework of adult researchers, the rights-bearing child is increasingly recognized not only as having the capacity but also the right to participate in research. More recently, this movement has transitioned from the direct engagement of children as research participants—now considered commonplace, although less so for those who are structurally vulnerable—to the involvement of children in research design, review, conduct, and dissemination. Yet, both practical and ethical challenges remain. While children have the right to participation, they also have the right to protection. In this commentary, we set out to: (i) lay forth epistemic, child rights, and child sociology arguments for doing research about, with and by children and youth; (ii) recount our own journey of including children and youth in research to demonstrate the unique knowledge and insights gained through these approaches; and (iii) offer lessons learned on how to engage children and youth in research, including the involvement of structurally vulnerable groups.

《儿童权利公约》加速了儿童观的转变（联合国《儿童权利公约》，联合国文件 A/RES/44/25，1989 年，http://www2.ohchr.org/ english/law/pdf/crc.pdf）在过去几十年里改变了儿童和家庭研究的格局。一旦被认为可信度较低并且在成人研究人员的解释框架之外运作，拥有权利的儿童就越来越被认为不仅有能力而且有权利参与研究。最近，这一运动已经从儿童作为研究参与者的直接参与（现在被认为是司空见惯的，尽管对于那些结构上脆弱的人来说不太常见）转变为让儿童参与研究设计、审查、实施和传播。然而，实际和道德挑战仍然存在。儿童在有参与权的同时，也有受到保护的权利。在这篇评论中，我们着手：(i) 提出认知、儿童权利和儿童社会学论据，以进行有关儿童和青少年、与儿童和青少年一起进行的研究； (ii) 讲述我们自己让儿童和青少年参与研究的历程，以展示通过这些方法获得的独特知识和见解； (iii) 提供有关如何让儿童和青少年参与研究的经验教训，包括结构性弱势群体的参与。