Understanding and Measuring Child Well-Being in the Region of Attica, Greece: Round Three

Child Indic Res. 2022;15(4):1295-1311. doi: 10.1007/s12187-021-09910-4. Epub 2022 Jan 28.

Abstract

This research paper aims to present the results of implementing a new multi-dimensional and cumulative tool that records child well-being, in the 2nd semester of the school year 2019-2020, which is the third round of an ongoing research. It also presents the results of the same year as a whole, in order to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the well-being of children. The tool was applied in Attica through questionnaires, addressing 22 public schools and three support centers of the organization, The Smile of the Child (25 units in total). The number of children in the sample was 560, belonging to three distinct school categories. The results of the 2nd semester were mapped out in seven clusters. The analysis of the results of the school year 2019-2020 as a whole was applied on a sample of 1,731 children; in other words, it incorporated almost the entire sample of the surveys conducted in the 1st and 2nd semesters. Finally, an action plan, based on the legal framework, focusing on mitigating the negative effects of the pandemic on child well-being is suggested.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12187-021-09910-4.

Keywords: COVID-19; Child well-being; Indicators; Legal framework; Social protection; Welfare economics.