Influence of attachment research and of day care research

Improving the quality of Day Care

Understanding attachment processes can help improve the quality of day care.

 Caring for Children in Hospital

Attachment research into separation has influenced visiting arrangements in hospitals as well as the institutional care of children

Adoption

Before mothers were encouraged to nurse the baby for a significant period of time but this meant that when the child left for the adoptive family the sensitive period was over. Now mothers are encouraged to give up their baby in the first week of birth and adoptive mothers and children are just as securely attached as non adoptive mothers and children.

Improving the quality of parenting

programs have been developed to help caregivers respnd more sensitively to their young.

Importance of high quality day care

Field found that the greatest benefits of day care on peer relations were for those children in high quality care.

Good staff to child ratios

NICHD found that day care staff can only provide sensitive if the ratio was as low as 1:3

Minimal staff turnover

Schaffer identified the consistency of care as one of the most important factors in good outcomes. Children may fail to form an attachment with regularly changing staff or suffer from anxiety if a staff member they have attached to leaves.

Qualified and experienced staff

Sylva et al found that the quality of day care was positively correlated with the qualification levels of the day care staff