Developing an Index of Well-Being for Nine-Year-Old Irish Children

This paper outlines the development of an index of child well-being using data from the first wave of the Child Cohort in the Growing up in Ireland study. This national longitudinal study explores children’s lives by collecting data from 8,568 nine-year-old children, their caregivers and their teachers. Well-being indices are useful to describe children’s circumstances, to monitor child outcomes, and to create and assess the efficacy of social polices involving children. Traditionally, macro-level data has been used in the construction of child well-being indices. However, micro-level data is used in this paper to provide a child-centered perspective on their well-being. This index is comprised of three domains; physical health, social & emotional functioning and educational attainment. Fourteen measures were used in the creation of these domains utilising data from children, caregivers and teachers on the child’s current development. The domain content, protocol followed and confirmatory process used in creating this index are discussed. Evidence is provided supporting the inclusion of the domains and the factorial structure of the index. A child well-being index of this sort is valuable as it manages to efficiently summarize the richness of information provided by multiple informants on the multidimensional nature of child well-being into a single index. Consequently, it can be easily used and understood by the various stakeholders involved in services related to child welfare.