Child Care Selection Under Welfare Reform: How Mothers Balance Work Requirements and Parenting

This paper examines the reasoning and experiences of mothers in selecting child care while trying to meet welfare-to-work requirements. Three theoretical positions that have been used to look at child care selection -rational choice, structuralist, and cultural - are examined and critiqued in light of a structural developmental psychology perspective. The paper then reports on semi-structured, open-ended interviews with seven mothers from three different ethnic groups—African- American, Anglo, and Latina—who range in age from 21 to 42. Interviews covered a 15-month period of time following the mothers' enrollment in a welfare- to-work program. The major finding is that mothers have hierarchically ordered criteria for evaluating child care possibilities, and the preeminent criteria is that they trust the child care provider to keep their children safe and well cared for. Structural constraints on the mothers choices are also analyzed. The findings in this article suggest that policy makers should focus on issues of trust and legitimacy of child care providers, as well as on more traditional concerns of supply and educational quality.     

Children''s Relationships with Caregivers: Mothers and Child Care Teachers

Infant, toddler, and preschool children's relationships with mothers and teachers were examined in this study. 110 children were observed with their mothers during child care arrivals and reunions. 403 children were observed with their teachers in child care. 3 categories of relationships were derived from these observations. Children in the secure relationship category experienced more teacher involvement than children in the avoidant or ambivalent relationship categories. Children in the ambivalent relationship categories experienced more teacher involvement than children in avoidant relationship categories. A subsample (n = 23) of children were seen with their mothers both during child care arrivals and reunions and in the Strange Situation. Relationship classifications were similar.     

平衡工作与快乐

21世纪的生活是和工作紧密结合在一起的.人们在忙碌的同时,却失去了原来的快乐感.怎样找回失落的快乐,让我们看看下面的这些建议吧. 　　……     

Unemployment and Work Interruption among African American Single Mothers: Effects on Parenting and Adolescent Socioemotional Functioning

Using interview data from a sample of 241 single African American mothers and their seventh- and eighth-grade children, this study tests a model of how 2 economic stressors, maternal unemployment and work interruption, influence adolescent socioemotional functioning. In general, these economic stressors affected adolescent socioemotional functioning indirectly, rather than directly, through their impact on mothers' psychological functioning and, in turn, parenting behavior and mother-child relations. Current unemployment, but not past work interruption, had a direct effect on depressive symptomatology in mothers. As expected, depressive symptomatology in mothers predicted more frequent maternal punishment of adolescents, and this relation was fully mediated by mothers' negative perceptions of the maternal role. More frequent maternal punishment was associated with increased cognitive distress and depressive symptoms in adolescents, and consistent with predictions, these relations were partially mediated by adolescents' perceptions of the quality of relations with their mothers. Increased availability of instrumental support, as perceived by mothers, predicted fewer depressive symptoms in mothers, less punishment of adolescents, and less negativity about the maternal role. Both economic stressors were associated with higher levels of perceived financial strain in mothers, which in turn predicted adolescents' perceptions of economic hardship. Adolescents who perceived their families as experiencing more severe economic hardship reported higher anxiety, more cognitive distress, and lower self-esteem.     

First-Time Fathers' Expectations and Experiences Using Child Care and Integrating Parenting and Employment

This study explores the expectations and experiences of 37 first-time fathers about using child care and combining work and family responsibilities. Fathers completed questionnaires and participated in interviews at two home visits, the first at infant age 4-6 weeks, the second at 4-5 months. At the first visit, fathers' expectations were positively correlated with paternal self-esteem. At the second visit, fathers' experiences were positively correlated with the quality of child care, the support at their work, and their desire for their partner to work. At both visits, fathers expressed their dissatisfaction with the length of their parental leave and indicated interest in reducing their work hours. At the second visit, fathers who were spending more time caring for their infants expressed greater feelings of competence and pleasure in parenting. Outcomes of this study suggest that employer policies such as increased parental leaves and reduced work hours may enhance fathers' experiences integrating parenting and employment by providing increased opportunities for fathers to spend more time with their infant. In contrast to their partners, fathers' greater objectivity in monitoring the quality of their infant's child care suggests that fathers should be encouraged to take a more significant role.     

Social Risk and Protective Child,Parenting, and Child Care Factors in Early Elementary School Years

Objective. African American children exposed to multiple social risk factors during early childhood often experience academic difficulties, so identification of protective factors is important. Design. Academic and school behavior trajectories from kindergarten through third grade were studied among 75 African American children who have been followed prospectively since infancy to test hypothesized protective factors: quality of home and child care environments during early childhood, child language and social skills at entry to kindergarten, and school characteristics. Results. Children exposed to multiple risks in early childhood showed lower levels of academic and social-emotional skills from kindergarten through third grade. Parenting mediated the association with risk. Children's language skills, parenting, and child care quality serve as protective factors in acquisition of mathematics skills and reduction in problem behaviors during the first 4 years of primary school for African American children facing multiple risks. Attending a school with a higher proportion of children from low-income families might predict increasing numbers of problem behaviors over time. Conclusions. Exposure to social risk in early childhood negatively predicted academic achievement and adjustment during early elementary school for African American children, in part through associations between exposure to social risk and less responsive and stimulating parenting. Furthermore, the negative associations between risk and academic outcomes were substantially weaker when children had more responsive and sensitive parents or child care providers or entered school with stronger language skills.     

Not Babysitting: Work Stress and Well-Being for Family Child Care Providers

Family child care providers contend with a number of work stressors related to the dual roles of operating a small business and providing child care in their home. Research has documented many sources of work related stress for family child care providers; however, research examining family child care providers’ experiences outside of the lens of quality of care and child outcomes is dated and scant. This study consisted of three focus groups of 11 family child care providers who shared their perspectives on work related stressors and well-being. Many of the study findings were congruent with previous research in the field; however, a key finding in this study was the importance of family child care providers to assert and establish a professional identity to mitigate work related stress. Recommendations and strategies to assist family child providers in constructing a professional identity are discussed.     

Welfare Dynamics, Support Services, Mothers' Earnings, and Child Cognitive Development: Implications for Contemporary Welfare Reform

This prospective longitudinal study, using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY; N = 614), addresses the gap in the research literature regarding the effects of welfare reform on children. Key questions addressed include whether welfare dynamics and support services relevant to welfare reform, both measured across the first 5 years of life, are associated with mothers' earnings in the 6th year and three child cognitive outcomes in the 7th and 8th years: Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) math and reading scores, and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT). Welfare dynamics are represented by total time on welfare, degree of cycling on and off welfare, and degree to which welfare and work are combined. Support services measured include three forms of child care (relative, babysitter, and center-based), as well as three forms of human capital supports (child support, job training, and education). Controlling for a range of background factors and for different patterns of welfare use across the first 5 years, small positive associations with mother's earnings were found for child support, education, and job training. Small positive associations also were found between child support and both math and reading scores. Finally positive associations of medium effect size were found between center care and both mothers' earnings and child PPVT scores. Although effect sizes are generally small, the results suggest the potential value of welfare reform approaches that emphasize long-term human capital development. Interactions between welfare dynamics and support services suggest subgroup differences. Specifically, positive effects of support services on earnings are strongest among mothers with higher levels of human capital (higher levels of work while on welfare, lower total time on welfare). Babysitter care appears to have negative effects on both reading and math scores of children whose mothers report low levels of work while on welfare. Implications for welfare reform policy are discussed.     

高校薪酬福利工作中的人文关怀

薪酬福利是高校人力资源管理中的一项非常重要的机制,具有其一定特点并面临日益复杂的现实情况,其中的问题如果不能被妥善解决,将会对高校产生重大的负面影响。本文通过探讨“人文关怀”对高校薪酬福利工作的现实意义,并总结两者有效结合的具体途径,试图为高校人力资源管理工作的完善和人才战略的发展提供重要的参考和借鉴。     

The Strengthening Families Initiative and Child Care Quality Improvement: How Strengthening Families Influenced Change in Child Care Programs in One State

Research Findings: This study investigated how the Strengthening Families through Early Care and Education initiative in Illinois (SFI) influenced change in 4 child care programs. Findings indicate that SFI influenced quality improvements through 4 primary pathways: (a) Learning Networks, (b) the quality of training, (c) the engagement of program directors, and (e) the organizational climate at programs. SFI's multilevel model of implementation was key to its effectiveness. Two barriers to improving family partnership practices were identified: lack of cultural competence and a negative organizational climate. Practice or Policy: First, quality improvement and professional development efforts are likely to be more effective in promoting real change when they target multiple levels of the context in and around child care programs. SFI's multilevel implementation approach is a model. Second, quality improvement efforts in the area of family engagement may be more effective when specific attention is given to strategies for creating a supportive organizational climate and collegial relationships among staff. Relationships within programs set the tone for relationships with families. Third, cultural competence requires increased attention to efforts to improve the quality of family partnership practices. A focus on organizational cultural competence may provide the workplace environment necessary to support culturally competent practice among program staff.     

Conflict and Ambiguity over Work Roles: The Impact on Child Care Worker Burnout

This study looks at the child care workplace from the viewpoints of occupational stress and social support as they relate to staff burnout. Subjects included 188 child care workers from licensed child care centers in predominantly rural areas of Pennsylvania. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to assess the contribution of work role conflict and work role ambiguity (two forms of occupational stress) to predictions of three facets of burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, personal accomplishment). In addition, the buffering effect of social support on the relationship between these variables was assessed. The results show that both work role conflict and work role ambiguity predict a significant portion of the variance in all three facets of burnout. In addition, support is provided for the hypothesis that social support buffers the effect of work role conflict and work role ambiguity on perceived emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. The results are discussed in terms of changes that could be made to improve child care as an adult work environment.     

Conflict and Ambiguity over Work Roles: The Impact on Child Care Worker Burnout

This study looks at the child care workplace from the viewpoints of occupational stress and social support as they relate to staff burnout. Subjects included 188 child care workers from licensed child care centers in predominantly rural areas of Pennsylvania. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to assess the contribution of work role conflict and work role ambiguity (two forms of occupational stress) to predictions of three facets of burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, personal accomplishment). In addition, the buffering effect of social support on the relationship between these variables was assessed. The results show that both work role conflict and work role ambiguity predict a significant portion of the variance in all three facets of burnout. In addition, support is provided for the hypothesis that social support buffers the effect of work role conflict and work role ambiguity on perceived emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. The results are discussed in terms of changes that could be made to improve child care as an adult work environment.     

Exploring Views about LARCs Among Parenting Rural Latinx Teenagers,Their Mothers,and Providers: Implications for Sexuality Education and Care

While long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) reduces risk of repeat-births, use remains low among rural Latinx adolescent mothers. This qualitative study identified perspectives about factors that influence LARC use among this population. Participants were dyads of parenting Latinx adolescent daughters and their mothers (n?=?9 dyads) and nurses (n?=?17). Findings revealed themes specific to this vulnerable population including (a) distinct ways LARC characteristics fit into parenting teenagers’ lives, (b) supportive health care climate toward LARCs, and (c) factors that inhibit LARC uptake. The study has implications for sexuality education that seeks to reduce repeat-births among this population.     

Emotion Regulation,Harsh Parenting,and Teacher Sensitivity Among Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Toddlers in Child Care

Research Findings: This study examined the transactional nature of harsh parenting and emotion regulation across toddlerhood, including the moderating role of teacher sensitivity in child care. Secondary data analyses were conducted with a subsample of families from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project who participated in center-based child care. Autoregressive cross-lagged path models were used to examine stability and transactional associations between observations of mothers’ harsh parenting behaviors and observers’ ratings of toddler emotion regulation at 14, 24, and 36 months. Teacher sensitivity was observed in children’s child care classrooms and was hypothesized to attenuate the negative impact of harsh parenting on subsequent emotion regulation. Results suggested that poorer emotion regulation and increased harsh parenting at 14 months were particularly salient in setting the stage for worse parent and toddler outcomes at 36 months. Teacher sensitivity was not a significant protective factor. Practice or Policy: Results are discussed in terms of the importance of early parent–toddler interactions that match the developing regulatory needs of young toddlers as well as considering how teacher sensitivity is conceptualized and measured so programs such as Early Head Start can best meet the needs of socioeconomically disadvantaged parents and toddlers.     

Custom-Fit Parenting: How Low- and Well-Accepted Young Adolescents Benefit from Peer-Related Parenting

Objective. The present study investigated whether longitudinal associations between peer-related parenting behaviors (facilitation of peer interactions, social coaching about peer problems) and peer adjustment were moderated by young adolescents’ peer status. Design. Participants included 123 young adolescents (mean age = 12.03 years; 50% boys; 58.5% European American) at Time 1. At Time 1 (summer before the middle school transition), parents reported on their facilitation of peer interaction opportunities and coaching strategies to a hypothetical peer exclusion situation; teachers reported on youth peer acceptance. At Times 1 and 2 (spring after the middle school transition), youth reported on peer adjustment (friendship quality, loneliness, peer victimization). Results. Peer acceptance (pre-middle school transition) moderated prospective associations between peer-related parenting and peer adjustment, yielding two patterns of associations. Parental facilitation predicted better friendship quality and lower levels of loneliness over time among youth with high peer acceptance, but not among youth with low peer acceptance. In contrast, parental social coaching predicted better friendship quality among youth with low peer acceptance, but lower friendship quality among youth with high peer acceptance. Conclusions. Not all forms of positive peer-related parenting are equally beneficial for all youth. Well-accepted youth may have the social opportunities to take advantage of parental facilitation, whereas low-accepted youth may have greater social needs and benefit from support in the form of social coaching. Implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the literatures on peer-related parenting and peer adjustment.     

Relationship-Focused Child Care Practices: Quality of Care and Child Outcomes for Children in Poverty

Research Findings: Child care delivery practices promoting continuous, primary caregiver-child relationships (relationship-focused child care) were evaluated for 223 preschool-age children (45% African American, 55% Latino) attending child care centers serving low-income children. Both relationship-focused and non-relationship-focused centers were accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Children in relationship-focused programs received more sensitive, involved, and affectionate caregiving and were more engaged with their caregivers than children in comparison centers, but some differences were greater for African American children. Outcomes associated with relationship-focused care included greater parent-reported child compliance and closer parent-caregiver relations, but no consistent benefits for cognitive school readiness, receptive language, or child behavior problems were found. Follow-up assessments were completed 1 year later for 119 children who remained in their programs. Social and cognitive outcomes improved over time, but some changes were moderated by child race/ethnicity and center type. Over time, parents reported greater child compliance and caregivers reported better parent-caregiver relationships in relationship-focused programs. Practice or Policy: Some social benefits of continuous, primary caregivers were found, but children's cognitive competencies improved with sustained attendance at these accredited programs regardless of the relationship-focused practices.     

Relationship-Focused Child Care Practices: Quality of Care and Child Outcomes for Children in Poverty

Research Findings: Child care delivery practices promoting continuous, primary caregiver–child relationships (relationship-focused child care) were evaluated for 223 preschool-age children (45% African American, 55% Latino) attending child care centers serving low-income children. Both relationship-focused and non-relationship-focused centers were accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Children in relationship-focused programs received more sensitive, involved, and affectionate caregiving and were more engaged with their caregivers than children in comparison centers, but some differences were greater for African American children. Outcomes associated with relationship-focused care included greater parent-reported child compliance and closer parent–caregiver relations, but no consistent benefits for cognitive school readiness, receptive language, or child behavior problems were found. Follow-up assessments were completed 1 year later for 119 children who remained in their programs. Social and cognitive outcomes improved over time, but some changes were moderated by child race/ethnicity and center type. Over time, parents reported greater child compliance and caregivers reported better parent–caregiver relationships in relationship-focused programs. Practice or Policy: Some social benefits of continuous, primary caregivers were found, but children's cognitive competencies improved with sustained attendance at these accredited programs regardless of the relationship-focused practices.     

Parenting in the Context of the Child: Genetic and Social Processes

The focus on the role of parenting in child development has a long-standing history. When measures of parenting precede changes in child development, researchers typically infer a causal role of parenting practices and attitudes on child development. However, this research is usually conducted with parents raising their own biological offspring. Such research designs cannot account for the effects of genes that are common to parents and children, nor for genetically influenced traits in children that influence how they are parented and how parenting affects them. The aim of this monograph is to provide a clearer view of parenting by synthesizing findings from the Early Growth and Development Study (EGDS). EGDS is a longitudinal study of adopted children, their birth parents, and their rearing parents studied across infancy and childhood. Families (N = 561) were recruited in the United States through adoption agencies between 2000 and 2010. Data collection began when adoptees were 9 months old (males = 57.2%; White 54.5%, Black 13.2%, Hispanic/Latinx 13.4%, Multiracial 17.8%, other 1.1%). The median child age at adoption placement was 2 days (M = 5.58, SD = 11.32). Adoptive parents were predominantly in their 30s, White, and coming from upper-middle- or upper-class backgrounds with high educational attainment (a mode at 4-year college or graduate degree). Most adoptive parents were heterosexual couples, and were married at the beginning of the project. The birth parent sample was more racially and ethnically diverse, but the majority (70%) were White. At the beginning of the study, most birth mothers and fathers were in their 20s, with a mode of educational attainment at high school degree, and few of them were married. We have been following these family members over time, assessing their genetic influences, prenatal environment, rearing environment, and child development. Controlling for effects of genes common to parents and children, we confirmed some previously reported associations between parenting, parent psychopathology, and marital adjustment in relation to child problematic and prosocial behavior. We also observed effects of childrenʼs heritable characteristics, characteristics thought to be transmitted from parent to child by genetic means, on their parents and how those effects contributed to subsequent child development. For example, we found that genetically influenced child impulsivity and social withdrawal both elicited harsh parenting, whereas a genetically influenced sunny disposition elicited parental warmth. We found numerous instances of children's genetically influenced characteristics that enhanced positive parental influences on child development or that protected them from harsh parenting. Integrating our findings, we propose a new, genetically informed process model of parenting. We posit that parents implicitly or explicitly detect genetically influenced liabilities and assets in their children. We also suggest future research into factors such as marital adjustment, that favor parents responding with appropriate protection or enhancement. Our findings illustrate a productive use of genetic information in prevention research: helping parents respond effectively to a profile of child strengths and challenges rather than using genetic information simply to identify some children unresponsive to current preventive interventions.