Psychology Commons^™

Measuring Well-Being Among School-Aged Children: Seeking A Developmentally Appropriate Qualitative Approach, Lauren Bellamy

The Journal of Purdue Undergraduate Research

Subjective well-being as a new field of social science research is calling for unique and innovative metrics and research methods. Studying the well-being of children introduces additional hurdles for data collection and research. The current field-favorite survey, the Personal Wellbeing Index–School Children (PWI-SC), asks participants to rate their “happiness” on a rating scale for seven domains of well-being and overall satisfaction with life. Current literature in the field of developmental and family science informs on the cognitive capabilities of children throughout their development and suggests that children in middle childhood may lack the ability to express abstract ideas (happiness) in …