Foster care in France: children's perception of their own well-being

Working to improve the welfare of children in care is a priority shared by all French child protection services. However, the means to measure and improve well-being are limited (Fergeus et al., 2019). Although the trend today is towards a more comprehensive understanding of the point of view of adults involved in the socioeducational process, too little is done to include the children's own perception of their situation and conditions of care. The purposes of this study are to document and analyse the point of view of children in foster families on their subjective well-being and also to identify contextual factors that influence it. Ninety-one children living in foster care, aged 13.5 years on average, completed the French version of the Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale developped by Huebner, Zullig Runa in 2012. The multidimensional evaluation of well-being (family, school, self, friends, and living conditions) reveals a moderate life satisfaction within the foster family and a weak one at school. Total life satisfaction levels are directly linked to the number of care orders the child has experienced, their duration, and the type of education received. The implications of these results for professional practices related to children in care will be discussed.