Large decline in children’s happiness in Poland over past five years, finds UNICEF report

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

The psychosocial wellbeing of children and young people in Poland has deteriorated significantly over the last five years, a report by UNICEF, the UN’s children’s agency, has found. There has also been a dramatic fall in the proportion who say teachers respect their rights.

Currently, 59% of children in Poland report feeling happy, down from 75% in 2019, according to a survey of 12- to 17-year-olds carried out in October and November 2024 by research firm IBRiS on behalf of UNICEF Polska. The proportion saying they are unhappy rose from 8% to 13% over that period.

Parents, however, seemed unaware of this shift, with 82% of them currently believing their children to be happy, only slightly down from 86% in 2019.

Children most often cite time with friends (52%), free time (45%) and hobbies (41%) as key sources of happiness. Only 24% of children named family love as a source of happiness, compared to 47% of parents.

When asked what made them unhappy, children often pointed to having too many responsibilities. “Students complain about too much studying, quizzes and tests, and the pressure to get results causes fatigue, stress, and no time to relax and develop passions,” writes UNICEF Polska.

Poland’s current government, which came to power in December 2023, has moved to reduce the size of the school curriculum and to end compulsory homework for younger children in an effort to improve wellbeing.

Students also reported unhappiness due to peer rejection, loneliness, high parental expectations, lack of support, and negative interactions with teachers, including criticism and unfair treatment.

The report found a dramatic drop in the proportion of children who say teachers respect their rights, with the figure now standing at 38%, down from 70% in 2019.

Children most often identify parents or guardians as those who respect their rights, with three-quarters stating that their rights are upheld by them in everyday situations.

UNICEF Polska says that its report makes clear that “the psychosocial condition of children and young people is deteriorating”, with “a sizable and growing proportion of them not feeling happy”.

It recommends strengthening schools’ role in supporting children’s wellbeing by creating a secure, inclusive environment, monitoring students’ psychosocial conditions, and collaborating with families.

The report’s authors also suggest that activities to strengthen the emotional and psychosocial competencies of pupils should be integrated into curriculums and extracurricular activities, especially for adolescents.

They recommend creating “a balance between the demands of education and the need for rest and the development of passions” and organising school premises “to create places for rest at school that allow students to recover physically and emotionally”.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Pixabay / Pexels

Alicja Ptak

Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.