Children and the good life: new challenges for research on children

pt. 1. Children and the good life : theoretical challenges / Susann Fegter, Claudia Machold, and Martina Richter -- pt. 2. The capability approach and research on children / Zoé Clark and Franziska Eisenhuth -- pt. 3. Children's perspectives : methodological critiques and empirical studies / Christine Hunner-Kreisel and Melanie Kuhn -- pt. 4. Structural conditions and children in different national contexts / Tim Köhler and Uwe Sander.

"In April 2009, an inspiring international conference was held at Bielefeld on the topic ""Children and the Good Life: New Challenges for Research on Children."" The focus was on how we can define and measure a ""good life"" for children growing up in the modern world. This tied in with discussions on how convincing universalistic theories are, what research on children can contribute, and how children themselves can be integrated into the research process and debates on the ""good life."" Discourses and the production of knowledge on the ""good life"" or ""well-being"" require a guiding idea or a theoretical frame. This frame can come from the feminist ethic of care or from the Human and Children's Rights Convention, from the idea of welfare, or from the Capability Approach."