Finding Factors as Predictors of Children’s Well-being Focusing On Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic Based on Analysis Results of the “Survey on Children’s Daily Life Among Eight Asian Countries 2021”

This study aimed to obtain implications on childrearing and childcare practices for achieving children's well-being through analyzing factors predicting children's well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic in eight Asian countries. We primarily focused on “resilience,” the ability to cope with and recover from difficult situations, which had been confirmed from previous studies as a positive factor towards children’s development in the context of hardships. We also chose other potential predictors referring to Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, including mothers’ concerns about COVID-19, household income, number of playmates, support from childcare facilities/schools, family environments, and children’s lifestyles, and examined how these predictor variables predict children’s well-being. We found that children’s resilience strongly predicted their well-being, which was common in all eight countries. Family factors and children's daily life factors were also associated with children's well-being. The country-specific analysis also indicated the importance of support from childcare facilities/schools on well-being. Well-being and resilience are both psychological constructs and often studied as important indicators of child health. Resilience has been spot-lighted as an effective protective factor for children experiencing adversities such as the COVID-19 pandemic. We have found that resilience was the strongest predictor of well-being among other factors even during the COVID-19 pandemic.