Peer-reviewed article
Subjective Well-being of Children Left Behind by Migrant Parents in Six European Countries
Sergiu Bălţătescu, Tomasz Strózik, Kadri Soo, Dagmar Kutsar, Dorota Strózik et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study compared the subjective well-being of over 13,500 school children across six European countries, examining how parental migration affects children left behind. Children with migrant parents reported lower overall well-being than peers with resident parents, with girls more negatively affected and the gap widening as children age. Family and school satisfaction were important factors mediating the relationship between parental migration and child well-being. The findings highlight the need for targeted support and policies for left-behind children in migrant-sending countries.
Key points
- Left-behind children had lower subjective well-being than non-left-behind children across all six countries
- Girls were more negatively affected by parental migration than boys
- The well-being gap between left-behind and non-left-behind children increased with age
- Lower family and school satisfaction were associated with left-behind status
- Family and school satisfaction partially explained the association between parental migration and child well-being
Limitations
The study is cross-sectional, so it cannot establish causal relationships or determine whether parental migration causes lower well-being or whether other factors contribute to both migration decisions and child well-being. The analysis focuses on school-enrolled children in six European countries with similar post-communist contexts, limiting generalisability to other regions and populations.
Abstract
Abstract This paper presents a cross-national comparison of the influence of parental migration on children’s subjective well-being (SWB). While studies often focus on the economic implications of adult migration, research on its effects on children’s well-being is scarce, particularly in Europe. Data from surveys of over 13,500 school children in six European countries with a communist legacy were analysed. These were collected as part of Children’s Worlds - The International Study of Children’s Well-being (ISCWeB). The findings reveal that left-behind children generally have lower levels of SWB than non-left-behind children, with girls being more affected, and the gap in well-being increases with age. Left-behind status was also associated with lower family and school satisfaction. A hierarchical logistic regression model was used to explore the role of parental migration and family and school life satisfaction in predicting high SWB of children. While including family and school life satisfaction in the model weakened the association between parental migration and child SWB, the models’ explanatory power improved. This study emphasizes the need for further research in this area to better understand the complex dynamics between parental migration, children’s subjective well-being, and other factors. These insights are essential for developing targeted interventions and policies to support the well-being of left-behind children in migrant sending countries.