Understanding and Measuring Child Well-Being in the Region of Attica

In this research project, an initial indicator of child welfare (well-being) or its opposite child poverty is being used, which has already been stated by the scientific coordinator of the project. This indicator will be developed, finalized and compared with other relevant indicators that record child welfare (well-being) and will be implemented in schools of Attica region.

The participant – user is the “The Smile of the Child”, which has confirmed in writing its intention to cooperate and will help to focus on necessary information for the study of child welfare. An analysis of the results will be held, which will formulate specific proposals for economic and social policy, mitigation of child poverty and enhancing the welfare of children in Greece

Goals

Application of the index in the schools of Attica, for recording child welfare / poverty, according to a distinct kind of child poverty, which appeared in Greece during the crisis with further investigation.
Through the participant – user, it will be consolidated and confirmed that the crisis in Greece had affected the child welfare / poverty, while the degree of influence will be verified.
After the completion of the project, the necessary know-how will be provided, in order to establish the participant-user as an Observatory for Children’s Welfare .

Why is this project significant for society?

The impact on society, as an outcome of the project will include the development of analyses of the exploration into child welfare dimensions and indicators which will provide a starting point for a debate on the ways in which the study of child poverty can be dealt with by Greek experts. Moreover, it may be anticipated that officials responsible for policy making, representatives of research institutions and researchers themselves will become more aware of the complexities of defining and measuring child welfare and will thus become more attentive to the need of further investigation of appropriate methods and processes for implementing a more effective system of social protection in Greece. Another impact of the project is to provide the necessary know-how to establish “The Smile of the Child” as an observatory for children’s welfare. Finally, the project is expected to have a long term impact on social inequalities in Greece since it will produce new findings on the estimation of child welfare.

What is the mission of the project?

The inordinate growth of child poverty, brought about by the economic crisis in Greece, created urgent demands for social scientific research. With this framework in mind, the aim of our project is: the interpretation, measuring and the monitoring of child wellbeing.