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A cross‐sectional study of children and their families in different child care environments: Some data and conclusions
Author(s) -
Winett Richard A.,
Fuchs William L.,
Moffatt Sarah A.,
Nerviano Vincent J.
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.585
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1520-6629
pISSN - 0090-4392
DOI - 10.1002/1520-6629(197704)5:2<149::aid-jcop2290050209>3.0.co;2-v
Subject(s) - test (biology) , wife , child care , psychology , day care , developmental psychology , demography , medicine , family medicine , nursing , paleontology , sociology , political science , law , biology
This study compared children and families involved in four child care environments—all day center care ( n = 35), all day sitter (family) care ( n = 15), partial center/sitter‐home (mixed) care ( n = 31), and exclusive at home care ( n = 43). These 124 two‐parent families were predominately white and middle class. Measures included the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities, a preschool test, a social developmental scale, indices of parent‐child interactions, parental engagement in child care tasks and household chores, leisure time activity, behavior management style, quality of center care, and length of time in care outside the home. Demographic differences (SES, race, age of child, birth order, number of children in the family, wife's age, and wife working) that existed between the groups were seen as representing particularly important, naturally occurring social patterns, and therefore were separately analyzed and presented. The results indicated that the mixed group tended to score higher than the other groups on measures of intellectual ability, but it was nuclear whether these differences reflected the higher SES of this group or the partial child care situation. The day care and at‐home groups were well matched and did not differ significantly on child measures. Greater paternal involvement in child and home care was associated with the use of child care outside the home and maternal employment. Lower SES was significantly related to lower Peabody scores, a more punitive discipline style, and more time spent in child care outside the home. Number of children in the family showed a curvilinear relationship (high scores = two children) with some ITPA scales; and a pattern of low ITPA scores for only children emerged. The results were discussed in terms of developing methodologies to examine the interrelationships of family patterns and child care modalities, the design and evaluation of day care centers, and some social policy implications of the effects of SES on child development.