Material deprivation, family functioning, and child well-being: an empirical examination in a cross‐national comparative study

This study explored the relationships among material deprivation, family functioning, and child well-being under the theoretical frameworks of family investment theory and family stress model. A cross‐national comparative study was conducted between South Korea and Norway to investigate whether the influence paths differed across East Asian and Nordic countries. A sample of 6,969 children was obtained from the second wave of the International Survey of Child Well-Being (ISCWeB), a newly available cross‐national dataset on child well-being. Multi-group Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to examine how material deprivation influenced family functioning and child well-being, and whether the influencing mechanisms differed by countries. The results indicated that material deprivation had a direct and negative effect on the well-being of children from both countries. Family functioning significantly mediated the association between material deprivation and child well-being. Moreover, the results indicated significant group differences between South Korea and Norway. The effect of material deprivation on child well-being was stronger for children in Norway than those in South Korea. However, the effects of material deprivation on family functioning and the effect of family functioning on child well-being were stronger for children in South Korea compared to those in Norway. Overall, the results provided empirical support for the family investment theory and family stress model from a cross-cultural perspective. Research findings could provide practical implications for social policies and clinical interventions.