This report on the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and youth draws on data from the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC).

The report proposes and explores a novel approach to measuring social and emotional wellbeing in LSIC. Inspired by a holistic construct of social and emotional wellbeing outlined by a First Nations scholar-led team the report uses an exploratory factor analysis and structural equation model to identify which LSIC variables align with domains of social and emotional wellbeing. 

Although the method requires further development for conclusive and longitudinal use, the findings demonstrate that a promising factor structure exists for a series of LSIC variables in Waves 11 and 12. When modelled collectively, these factors appear to express the interconnected and interrelated framework for social and emotional wellbeing outlined by the holistic construct.