The Relationship between Family Policy and Children’s Quality of Life among OECD Countries: Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis

Abstract

This study aims to clarify the relationship between family policy and children’s quality of life through an international comparison and to determine which family policy factors contribute to children’s quality of life. The research question is “How can family policies be combined to improve children’s quality of life in terms of health and economy?” It includes nine categories of family policies related to money, service, and leave. Measures of children’s quality of life include low birth weight, infant mortality, and child poverty. Using the OECD Family Database, and the OECD Child Well-being Data, fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparison Analysis (fsQCA) was used among 20 OECD countries. Combinations of family policies significant to the children’s quality of life were derived from the results. This study contributes to the literature by revealing the effectiveness of states’ investment in family policy. In addition, the study indicates that since family policies interact with each other, those policies combine to improve children's quality of life.