Around half of the State's 1,000,000 children are affected by income poverty at some stage during their childhood.
A major study by the ESRI published yesterday, which tracked children between 1994 and 2001, found that young people tended to move in and out of poverty based on factors such as the employment, education and health status of their parents.
Of the State's just over 1,000,000 children, 535,000 experienced poverty at some stage over this period.
A quarter of all children (246,000) experienced poverty for a relatively short time of between one and two years. However, just under a fifth (182,000) remained "locked" in poverty for between five and eight years.
One in five children experience relative income poverty at any one point in time.
Income poverty is measured as being below 60 per cent of median income threshold for society as a whole.
The research, Day In, Day Out: Understanding the Dynamics of Child Poverty, found that the age of children and family size tended to affect the length of time a child experienced poverty.
The level of education of a child's parents was found to be a critical factor influencing a child's risk of experiencing poverty. For example, a child whose parents never went to secondary school were 23 times more likely to be living in poverty compared to children whose parents had a third-level qualification.
Barbara Johnston, of the Combat Poverty Agency, which commissioned the research, said the research indicated there was no single solution to the problem of child poverty.
"The response needs to be broader than simply providing child-income support. Increased Government funding in this area is having an impact, but investment must be complemented by a multi-dimensional approach if real success is to be achieved."
She said as well as improving welfare benefits and childcare allowances more needed to be done on issues such as improving access to employment, pre-school education for vulnerable children and providing more affordable childcare services.
Minister for Social Affairs Séamus Brennan said while he was determined to try to eradicate child poverty, latest figures suggested that at least 100,000 children had been lifted out of poverty as a result of targeted measures and supports over the last decade.
He said trends indicated that some 65,000 children remained in consistent poverty, a measure of poverty based on people who experience deprivation in relation to a number of items.
"We have made really significant progress in tackling child poverty in recent years. Whether we now have 65,000 or more or less remaining at risk of poverty can be debated, but the reality is that we have an extremely urgent task.
"That is to concentrate our efforts on ending for good the unacceptable face of child poverty in 21st century Ireland," Mr Brennan said.
He said as well as major increases in social welfare rates and child benefit, a number of initiatives were under way to help target child poverty.
These included steps to expand the career and education prospects of lone parents, whose children statistically face a high risk of poverty.
He said while 60 per cent of lone parents were employed, many were in low-paid part-time work that offered little opportunity for career enhancement.
Mr Brennan said he planned to bring forward legislation on these issues this year.
