The Impact Of Day Care

NICHD

• 1991 longitudanal study
• 1,000 children from 10 different locations 
• assessed at regular intervals
• parent asked to fill out questionaire about child
• found that the more time spent in day care correlated with the adults rating the children as aggressive, disobident and assertive
• full time day care were 3 times more likely to be the above 3

EPPE

• 2003 european longitudnal study 
• children aged 3-7
• taking into account the childrens backgrounds
• found that children who spent longer in day care were rated as showing more evidence of anti-social behaviour - rated by teachers 

Evaluation

• NICHD - Sarah Friedman stated that results from the study also showed that 85% of children who spent 10 - 30 hours in day care did not show higher levels of aggresion.
• Lack of causal relationship - cause and effect cannot be established due to IV not being directly manpiulated, can only show a link between aggresion and day care.
• Other factors may affect aggression - such as mother sensitivity or a higher maternal education. Research ahas suggested that impact on a childs aggresion are more strongly affected by factors at home than day care.

• Natural experiment allows psychologists to study real problems in a natural setting. 
• Participants are aware of study so participant effects, investigator effects and demand characteristics may occur.
• Questionaires - answers may not be truthful, parents may not wish to admit that their child is aggresive or may answer according to social desirability.

• Secure attachments linked with better peer relations
• Minnesota longitudnal study 2005
• found infants who were sercurely attached became more popular 
• However children in day care are more likely to be insercurely attached
• Belsky & Rovine 1988
• 20 hours + of day care 
• children were more likely to be insercurely attached compared with children at home
• Alison Clarke - Stewart 1994
• 150 children
• children were consistently more advanced in their social development than children who stayed at home.
• Fields 1991
• Number of hours spent in day care correlated with the number of friends they had.
• Creps and Vernon- Feagans 1999
• found that children who started day care before the age of 6 months were actually more sociable then those who started later on

Quality of Care 

• good staff to child ratio
• minimal staff turnover
• suitable substitue emotional care provided 

Indididual Differences

• children deal with day care differently 

Lack of commitment and interest

• parents have a greater interest in their childs well being than the staff 

Childs age and number of hours 

• negative effects occur when child is below 6 months
• longer time spent = aggresive behaviour