Innovations and Challenges in Surveying Child Well-Being in Italy

Abstract This paper examines the state of child well-being survey data in Italy, highlighting the lack of longitudinal, child-centred studies, discussing the importance of such data for evidence-based policymaking and comparing Italy’s situation with that of other European countries where cohort studies are more established. We emphasize the importance of high-quality, longitudinal data to inform social policy and capture the dynamic factors impacting well-being, such as economic, health, and educational conditions. Although international initiatives by organisations like UNICEF and the OECD, have advanced child well-being research, gaps remain in Italy, where data are fragmented and cross-sectional, limiting the understanding of long-term outcomes. We introduce GUIDE (Growing Up In Digital Europe), the proposed first pan-European birth cohort study, aimed at addressing this gap by providing harmonized, longitudinal data on child and youth well-being, collected by directly surveying children and their families. This would provide a novel perspective for social research in Italy, where data on children’s viewpoints remain underdeveloped. As part of this initiative, Italy will conduct a pilot study for GUIDE in 2025, with a focus on adapting international survey tools to Italy’s cultural context. We describe Italy’s pilot study for GUIDE, including pre-test findings and sampling strategies, emphasizing the project’s potential to inform social policy in Italy and across Europe. By enhancing Italy’s child well-being data, GUIDE is positioned to inform policy and intervention strategies, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of the factors shaping child and youth well-being in Italy and Europe within a life-course framework.