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The Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Relationship Between Hong Kong Children’s Socioeconomic Status and Subjective Well-Being

Author

Listed:
  • Stefan Kühner

    (Lingnan University)

  • Maggie Lau

    (Lingnan University)

  • Evelyn Aboagye Addae

    (Lingnan University)

Abstract

In Hong Kong, as elsewhere across East Asia, few empirical studies have captured the voices of children in their middle years to analyse the determinants of subjective child well-being. To fill this research gap, this article employs data from 1,279 randomly selected Hong Kong children aged from 9 - 14 to investigate the mediating role of social capital in the relationship between their socioeconomic status (SES) and subjective well-being. The data was collected as part of the third wave of the International Survey of Children’s Well-Being which included Hong Kong for the first time. Using a path analytical framework and bootstrapping analysis as part of a theoretical ‘health assets approach’, several sub-components of social capital, including family, school, and community sense of belonging as well as peer relationships, were found to constitute protective factors for Hong Kong children’s overall life satisfaction (OLS) as well as their scores on the multi-item Children’s Worlds Subjective Well-Being Scale (CW-SWBS). After controlling for SES and other sociodemographic characteristics, family, school, and community autonomy support were not found to augment the subjective well-being of Hong Kong children. Furthermore, school sense of belonging augmented children’s scores on the composite CW-SWBS but not OLS. This article adds to the literature by presenting empirical evidence that a strong sense of belonging—particularly but not exclusively within children’s families—and strong peer relationships present valuable social resources that can be utilised by children in their middle years to optimise their subjective well-being irrespective of their family socioeconomic background.

Suggested Citation

  • Stefan Kühner & Maggie Lau & Evelyn Aboagye Addae, 2021. "The Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Relationship Between Hong Kong Children’s Socioeconomic Status and Subjective Well-Being," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 14(5), pages 1881-1909, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:chinre:v:14:y:2021:i:5:d:10.1007_s12187-021-09831-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s12187-021-09831-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Stephanie Hess, 2024. "The Impact of Cultural Values on the Association Between Family Relations and Children’s Life Satisfaction. A Comparison of Children in Two-Parent Families Across 39 Countries," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 17(5), pages 1891-1917, October.
    2. Muhammad Bahrudin & Robert Markus Zaka Lawang, 2023. "Investigating the Mediating Role of Social Capital in the Influence of Job Satisfaction on Subjective Well-Being among Librarians in Java Island, Indonesia," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(6), pages 1288-1301, June.
    3. Zewei Liu & Ji-Kang Chen, 2024. "Financial Resilience and Adolescent Development: Exploring a Construct of Family Socioeconomic Determinants and Its Associated Psychological and School Outcomes," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 17(5), pages 2283-2318, October.
    4. Shan Jiang & Lin Wang & Yuhang Cheng, 2023. "Unrevealing the Mediating Mechanisms Between Material Deprivation and Children’s Life Satisfaction: Empirical Evidence from the International Survey of Children’s Well-Being," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 18(2), pages 893-914, April.
    5. Ana Loreto Ditzel & Yuli Ketain Meiri & Ferran Casas & Asher Ben-Arieh & Javier Torres-Vallejos, 2023. "Satisfaction with the Neighborhood of Israeli and Chilean Children and its Effects on their Subjective Well-being," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 16(2), pages 863-895, April.
    6. Addae, Evelyn Aboagye & Kühner, Stefan & Lau, Maggie, 2023. "Social context of school satisfaction among primary and secondary school children in Hong Kong," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).

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