Participatory research with children presents a range of ethical challenges, particularly concerning power dynamics between adults and children in the research process. Factors such as the research setting, parental consent, the role of gatekeepers, interview dynamics, and the methods used can either facilitate or limit children’s participation. For migrant children and their families, specific issues like the language of communication, the materials developed for the study, socio-economic status, and migration-related vulnerabilities, such as sensitive experiences of (forced) migration, are especially important. This paper explores these ethical considerations through the lens of our research in the WoKidS project, which examines the subjective well-being of children (N = 84) aged 8 to 14, both with and without a migration background. The article is grounded in an ethical reflexivity approach, where multiple researchers involved in the study reflect on their experiences and practices while conducting research with (migrant) children.

In 2022, Russian forces invaded Ukraine, resulting in one of the largest refugee crises in Europe. Switzerland took in around 60,000 Ukrainian refugees, many of whom were children. Drawing on qualitative interviews with Ukrainian refugee children (aged 8–14) who participated in the WoKidS (Children’s Well-being in German-Speaking Switzerland) project, we reconstruct the importance of family for their subjective well-being by addressing three interrelated aspects: home, objects and relationships. We argue that, despite experiencing adverse situations, refugee children are active participants in the processes of homemaking and the promotion of family co-presence and care across borders. Furthermore, the children’s perspectives expand our understanding of (transnational) families and (transnational) care, showing that well-being is relational and challenging the notion of family as ‘left behind’.

Zusammenfassung: Die Frage, was Kinder unter Wohlbefinden verstehen und was sie aus ihrer Sicht brauchen, damit es ihnen gut geht, steht im Mittelpunkt des vom Schweizerischen Nationalfonds (SNF) finanzierten Forschungsprojekts Wohlbefinden von Kindern in der deutschsprachigen Schweiz (Laufzeit 09/2021 bis 08/2024). Das Forschungsprojekt beschäftigt sich mit der Frage nach dem Wohlergehen und Wohlbefinden von Kindern, nach dem, was ihnen wichtig ist und wie sie ihren Alltag gestalten, nicht mehr allein über Erwachsene vermittelt, sondern durch die Kinder selbst erzählt. In diesem Sinne bearbeitet es folgende Forschungsfragen: Wann, unter welchen Bedingungen und wie erleben Kinder Wohlbefinden?