Victimization Experiences and Quality of Life of Children in China’s Welfare System: Does Relationship to the Caregiver Make a Difference?

The term “de facto unattended children” in the Chinese welfare system refers to children whose parents are incapable of providing custody for various reasons, including being disabled or ill, incarcerated, or missing. Despite their vulnerability, these children have received inadequate attention in research. In this study, we examined the victimization experiences of unattended children. Further, we compared their caregiving arrangements as well as differences between victimization types in relation to quality of life concerning different aspects. Two hundred ten unattended children (aged 8–16) in the Chinese welfare system participated in the study. Participants were asked about their living arrangements, victimization experiences, and health-related quality of life. Descriptive analyses and multiple multivariate regressions were conducted. The results show that four out of five children who were surveyed reported victimization experiences in the preceding year, and over half of them reported polyvictimization. Victimization experiences in all different types and polyvictimization predicted lower levels of quality of life. Among children with the same level of victimization, those taken care of by grandparents had a better quality of life compared to those taken care of by parents. However, there was no difference in quality of life among children at risk for child abuse, regardless of their relationship with the caregiver. The results suggest that unattended children in China’s welfare system are at high risk for child victimization, which is associated with a low quality of life. The involvement of grandparents can offset some adverse impacts of child victimization. Preventive support for such children and their caregivers, and their families is needed.