When we hear about children in the news they've often been badly treated or they're a feel good agent (where some cause has used a child's face to get good coverage in the media).
The NSW Commission for Children and Young People has decided to be radical and ask kids what they need to be happy, rather than working from the back end where we try to minimise what makes them unhappy.
It's an interesting study - they interviewed 126 children aged between eight and 15 years.
According to the kids, the nine factors that most influence their happiness are:
Agency (so having a say or independence)
Security
A positive sense of self
Activities
Adversity
Material and economic resources
Physical environments
Physical health
Social responsibility and moral agency
How interesting as a parent to see how low physical health sits, or material and economic resources. Don't kids just need a Nintendo DS or Wii to be happy? That's how they live life.
This study shows so much about the ways children consider life and priorities. Similar to adults, strangely enough, they live life for gratification day to day, but when asked to consider what matters they do care about themselves and their decisions.
http://kids.nsw.gov.au/
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