Austerity and children's well-being in Spain: a capability approach perspective

Abstract

The global financial crisis of 2007 quickly spread into an economic and social crisis that seriously affected children’s living conditions in developed countries and very seriously in Spain. While there is some literature concerning how child poverty has evolved in Spain over the last decade, less has been done to analyse the evolution of a wider concept of child well-being. To address this gap, this chapter proposes adopting the capability approach (CA) to understand and measure the evolution of children’s well-being in Spain, through participatory approaches. The CA focuses not only on what people are and do (functionalities) but also on the freedom they have to be and do (capabilities). The application of this approach to children is make a major contribution because it recognizes the agency of children and the potentialities of their active participation in the interpretation of their own lives.