The child has long been a powerfully affective figure in development work – whether as an abject victim or a joyful symbol of brighter futures. While the power of children to produce emotions in donors has been well studied, far less attention has been given to children’s own affective relationships with development organisations. This article explores the role of affect in children’s participation in non-governmental organisation (NGO) programs in Delhi, India. In particular, by focusing on spectacles of performance, this article highlights the importance of positive affects: happiness, fun, and joy in child-focused NGO programs. Yet, rather than a cynical critique of the way children’s joy is captured (typically in images) and translated into narratives of successful development, this article seeks to explore the possibilities for sincere ethnographic engagement with happiness itself. Drawing on the work of Sara Ahmed, and exploring the temporal dimensions of positive affects, I seek to engage seriously with children’s joyful experiences in development programs, while simultaneously questioning any simplistic equation of child happiness with developmental success.

长期以来，这个孩子一直是发展工作中的有影响力的人物-无论是作为受害的受害者还是快乐的未来象征，都是美好的未来。尽管已经对儿童在捐赠者中产生情绪的能力进行了充分的研究，但对儿童自身与发展组织的情感关系的关注却很少。本文探讨了情感在印度德里儿童参与非政府组织（NGO）计划中的作用。尤其是，通过关注表演眼镜，本文强调了积极影响的重要性：在以儿童为中心的NGO计划中，幸福，快乐和欢乐。然而，与其愤世嫉俗地批评儿童的欢乐被捕获（通常以图像形式）并转化为成功发展的叙事方式，本文旨在探索与幸福本身进行真诚的人种学互动的可能性。我借鉴了萨拉·艾哈迈德（Sara Ahmed）的工作，并探索了积极影响的时间维度，我力求在发展计划中认真对待儿童的快乐经历，同时质疑儿童幸福与发展成功的任何简单方程式。