Patterns of mother and father involvement in day care

Abstract

Twenty-eight dual-earner couples were interviewed 10 times each to determine their involvement in their young child’s day care center. Mothers picked up the child significantly more often than did fathers. Mothers and fathers spent about equal amounts of time in the center during their visits. In comparison to fathers, mothers were significantly more communicative with caregivers and the director. There were many similarities between mothers and fathers in the topics they discussed with staff.