Child Survey as an Essential Part of Child Well-Being Index Design

The article is aimed at analyzing the possibilities of measuring child well-being and creating a child well-being index in Russia. It presents the materials of an empirical study that involved pilot surveys of children aged 10 to 17 (N=1942) and parents of children of the same age (N=1589) conducted in the Tambov region. The Index is based on six main areas of child well-being (domains): education, safety, health, material well-being, social relations, self-realization. The results obtained make it possible to compare the notions of parents and children about various aspects of well-being. We argue that children’s position is essential for a comprehensive assessment of child well-being, and thus interviewing children must be a necessary element in any child well-being index design.