Publication
Title
Child well-being in Flanders: a multidimensional account
Author
Abstract
In this article we characterise the well-being of young children in the Belgian region of Flanders. We focus on three commonly used indicators: educational attainment, the existence of special needs and the occurrence of problematic behaviour. The former derives from a relatively impartial source, the schooling system, while the latter two originate from parental assessment. Somewhat surprisingly, the different measures are only weakly associated with each other. Moreover, negative outcomes tend to correlate with different characteristics of the child and the household, depending on the well-being indicator used. Only a low level of education of the mother and the fact the child is living in a single parent family is consistently associated with negative outcomes. This is not true, however, for a whole range of other characteristics, like the work schedule of the parents, the sex of the child, the childs rank in the line of siblings or the number of children in the household. Consequently, policy makers should be wary of quick conclusions when presented with results from single indicator research. Educational lagging, for example, may seem a very objective measure of problems, yet it does not necessarily coincide with problematic behaviour nor a parental perception of special needs. Hence, political action is not self-evident and may require additional justification. For future research, a more thorough investigation about the links between the various indicators of child well-being seems indicated.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Social indicators research: an international and interdisciplinary journal for quality-of-life measurement. - Dordrecht
Publication
Dordrecht : 2008
ISSN
0303-8300 [print]
1573-0921 [online]
DOI
10.1007/S11205-007-9198-Z
Volume/pages
89 :2 (2008) , p. 283-304
ISI
000259443900004
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 22.01.2009
Last edited 25.05.2022
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