Attachment - Day Care & People and Studies

What makes a good daycare?
.Low Children:Staff Ratio (more staff than children or enough to fit the 3 children to 1 staff)
.Dedication and training of staff
.Temperment of Children
.Staff Turnover and Routine
.Stuff for children to do

Day Nurseries - Many Children the same age so wont get as much attention which will make the child seek attention. The routine will also change slightly. Most Nurseries in the UK look after 26-40 children and are inspected by OFSTED. Must have the staff:children ratio of these;
. 1:8 3-5 year olds
. 1:4 2-3 year olds
. 1:3  2 year olds or less

Childminders - A small grouped 'look after' in the home environment. Only 3 children at any one time for more individual attention and the routine will be kept the same. Dont need to be qualified but need to be registered and OFSTED checks.

:( Penelope & Leach (2007) - Found that children being cared for by their mother do significantly more well development than those cared for in day nurseries, childminders or relatives. Also children cared for in childminders do better development than those in day nurseries.

:) Rutter (81) - Failed to identify marked differences in the quality of the mother-child attatchment between infants reared at home or daycare.

:) Clarke-Stewart (94) - Found no evidence of attachment differences between childcare or childminders and being raised at home.

:( Schwartz (83) - Non-Parental care was associated with increased avoidance and insecurity attachment. (However does not state how long the care needs to not be there)

:( Belsky & Rovine (88) - Found that children who spent more than 20 hours per week in day care were more insecurely attached than home reared children. (However fails to concider if the home conditions for the child are the reason for the insecure attachment)

:( Sammons (2003) - Indicated that there is a slight risk of increased antisocial behaviour when children spent more than 20 hours per week in daycare and increased noticability when spent 40 hours a week or more in care.

:( Melhuish (2004) - Researcher involved in EPPE also warned of increase aggression among children whos carers are always changing.

:( NICHD (National Institute of Child Health & Human Development) - Studied 4 1/2 year old children in kindergarten with data being recorded of child behavioural problems.

:( Baker (2005) - After daycare for 2 to 4 year olds, children are 24% more likely to be aggressive.

:) EPPE Project - Higher care quality from staff had children with more indipendant, cooperation, conformability and sociability with other children.

:) Field (91) - Children were more friendly and engaged in more extacuricular extracuricular activities with more hours of daycare.

:) :( Harvey (99) - Evaluated children of working mothers have no permanent harm from mothers absence (could be a good thing and a bad thing).

:) :( Campbell (2001) - The age a child enters daycare is also vital for social development. Social competence with peers beging to stabalise at 3 1/2 years.

Shafer (2004) - suggested that when determining whether or not a child in daycare might benefit or suffer because of maternal employment, we must take into account factors like support from the husband or other members of the family, he ability to cope with the employment and domestic duties and her motivation for working. Also the quality of care the child receives, their individual differences and the childs age and number of hours placed in daycare. He said that at optimal conditions children may actually benefit from daycare!