Day Care Providers Research Articles

Getting a head start: early provision of day care among municipalities in Norway

Municipal day care services for children in Norway have experienced two important reforms: the introduction of the Kindergarten Act in 1975, and the introduction of preschools for 6‐year‐olds in 1991. Focusing on the relationship between environmental inputs and policy outcomes, this article attempts to identify characteristics influencing the propensity towards early provision of day care in the municipalities. Applying logistic regression, service‐specific factors show the greatest importance, as opposed to more general municipal features. The political system, in terms of high female representation and low representation from the Christian Democratic Party, the Center Party, and the Progress Party in local councils, seems responsive to the proportion of children, the percentage of women working full time, and average net income per capita. The persisting importance of gender‐specific variables is discussed – suggesting different interpretations of the results in relation to the feminization of politics.

The Dilemma of Municipalities: Scandinavian Approaches to Child Day-care Provision

The article discusses the role of Scandinavian local governments in providing welfare state services. Wide-ranging social care services are probably the most distinctive feature of the Scandinavian welfare societies. These services, in the main, have been financed publicly and provided by local government. The traditional principle of Scandinavian local self-government, requiring local autonomy, and the goal of a welfare state providing a uniformly equal service to all is, however, a contradiction in terms. How have the Scandinavian countries dealt with this dilemma? This question is discussed by an examination of the day-care service policies in the four Scandinavian countries. Two distinct Scandinavian policy-models seem to emerge, one that primarily respects the local discretion of municipalities and the other that favours a more centralised approach. Norway represents the local autonomy model, Sweden and Finland exemplify the centrally directed model, while Denmark displays features from both models. During the 1990s, the main responsibility for social services has been decentralized also in Sweden and Finland. At the same time, Scandinavian local government action has turned to a more liberal direction.

Maternal and Daycare Provider Perceptions of Early Infant Feeding Behaviors and Temperament

Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics: October 1997 - Volume 18 - Issue 5 - p 361

Sponsored Places: The Use of Independent Day-Care Services to Support Children in Need

SUMMARY The implementation of the Children Act 1989, with its emphasis on family support through the provision of non-stigmatizing local services and on local authorities working in partnership with voluntary and private service providers, has given a new focus to the use of independent day-care services to support children in need and their families. This article uses data from research in England and Wales on the implementation of the Children Act as it affects early years services, to consider the extent of sponsored day-care, the circumstances in which it is used, and the issues it raises for local authorities, independent day-care providers and the children themselves.

In-kind transfers, self-selection and optimal tax policy

This paper examines the role of public provision of goods as a redistributive mechanism when tax policies are designed optimally on the basis of the information available to the government. We characterize Pareto-efficient allocations that are attainable through the tax policy, and derive the conditions under which public provision will enhance welfare above the maximum that can be achieved through a mix of a general income tax and commodity taxes (price subsidies). First, when there are two produced goods, we prove that public provision is always Pareto-improving. The improvement is achieved through changing individuals' actual consumption levels. Second, with no restrictions on the number of goods, we derive a sufficient condition for public provision to be Pareto-improving. This is achieved by weakening self-selection constraints so that welfare improving tax changes are made possible. Suitable examples include provision of day care, basic health care and rights to a minimum old age pension.

A Descriptive Study of the Use of the Black Communication Style by African Americans within an Organization

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the use of the Black communication style by African Americans in an organized environment. The research method which was used involved a multimethod approach of data collection in the field using direct observation, and obtrusive observations, as well as semi-structured interviews. This investigation has shown that although the Black employees in this organization felt, in general, as if they were changing their communication style to fit the organizational norms, they continued to rely on the cultural norms underlying the Black communication style. U.S. demographics are foretelling a future that will require innovative organizational communication strategies. According to Fine, two facts about the U.S. corporate environment which are uncovered by demographic trends are that the workforce will be comprised of a “greater diversity of gender, race, age, culture, and language” and that the demand for qualified workers will exceed the supply thereby “creating intense competition among organizations for workers” [1]. These changing demographics are not going unnoticed by the U.S. corporate leaders. Specifically, the issues of most concern to organizational executives, according to Workforce 2000, center around linguistic and cultural differences. Most organizations have no innovative strategies for meeting the demands of a diverse workforce. Traditional programs, such as day-care provisions, flexible work times, and hiring and recruiting more people of color are being implemented by corporate America in an effort to meet the demand for diversity. However, organizations are often lacking in creative programs which will provide for this emerging diverse workforce an environment that will accept and nurture their diversity. Certainly these corporate executives are receiving little in the way of guidance from organizational researchers.

The political economy of subsidized day care

This paper presents a theoretical model of political support for public provision of day care. In an economy where there are high taxes on wage income, selfish taxpayers with no children in the day care system may favor substantial public subsidies to day care because such subsidies induce mothers to join the labor force and hence pay income tax. Our model makes explicit quantitative predictions of the relation between the distribution of wages, the income tax rate, and the subsidy rate for day care that maximizes net tax revenue from parents of small children. Applying parameter values from Sweden and the United States, we find that our model predicts a subsidy rate of between 50% and 100% for Sweden with its high tax rate on wages and between 15% and 30% for the U.S. with its lower tax rate on wages.

Cuidado infantil y empleo femenino en México : evidencia descriptiva y consideraciones sobre las políticas

Este trabajo analiza la oferta y organización del cuidado infantil público en México y presenta una serie de consideraciones en lo referente a la formulación de políticas futuras al respecto. La investigación se concentra en la evolución de las políticas públicas que regulan la provisión de cuidado infantil para los hijos de la mujer trabajadora en el sector formal, por medio del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS). Los datos sobre la evolución de la participación de la mujer en la fuerza de trabajo, los cambios en la estructura familiar, la oferta de guarderías y la organización del cuidado infantil, muestran que los servicios públicos formales no satisfacen la demanda existente.La política actual de la seguridad social mexicana está siendo reformada; por ejemplo, hoy están bajo consideración algunas políticas innovadoras para la reorganización y ampliación de la oferta de guarderías. Estas circunstancias, junto con los rápidos cambios que se han dado en las necesidades de la mujer y de las familias mexicanas, sugieren una situación propicia para revaluar la política sobre el cuidado del niño. Esta reevaluación deberá llevarse a cabo en dos niveles: en el de las metas generales del cuidado infantil, entendido éste como una política social o de combate a la pobreza –comparada con una política de empleo–, así como también en el nivel de la organización de los programas actuales.

How the local supply of day-care centers influences fertility in Norway: A parity-specific approach

In order to assess how expansion of day care facilities affects fertility, the Norwegian Family and Occupation Survey of 1988 was linked with individual register-based migration histories and time-series data on day-care coverage rates in all Norwegian municipalities. Many factors affect both the allocation of resources to day-care centers and a woman's probability of giving birth. The local coverage rate is positively associated with the probability of advancing from parity two, after control for geographical region, degree of urbanization and other confoun- ders. This effect of day-care supply, which is significant at low coverage levels, contributed to a moderate rise in third-birth rates after the mid-1970s. However, if the aggregate employment rate for women is also regarded as a confounder, the effect of day care may actually be insignificant. Moreover, the effect fades at higher coverage levels. Finally, there are indications that second- and first-birth probabilities decline with increasing provision of day care. These results suggest that further efforts to improve the supply of private and public day care - which in Norway are likely to be motivated by non-demographic concerns - will have little stimulating effect on fertility, at least if the subsidies and quality of care remain unchanged.

Cytomegalovirus infections in Toronto child-care centers: a prospective study of viral excretion in children and seroconversion among day-care providers.

To prospectively determine the rate of cytomegalovirus shedding in children and the rate of seroconversion to cytomegalovirus in providers at 38 infant-toddler day care centers in Toronto, Canada. Urine was collected for shell vial assay in 471 children between the ages of 3 and 42 months. Providers (n = 206) were tested for the presence of cytomegalovirus antibody by latex agglutination. Of the 68 providers who were seronegative, 56 were retested approximately 1 year later. Viruria was documented in 79 (17%) children and antibody in 67% of providers. Seropositivity was significantly related to country of birth outside Canada, presence of children at home < 5 years of age and increased household size. Seroconversion was documented in 12.5% (n = 7). Of these providers 71% worked at centers where workers never wore gloves for diaper changing vs. 33% of those who did not seroconvert (P = 0.06), and all were younger than 30 years vs. 59% of those who did not seroconvert (P = 0.04). In centers with viruria the association of seroconversion with lack of glove use was enhanced (P = 0.04). Seroconversion was marginally more likely in providers working with infants only than with infants and toddlers or with toddlers alone. Logistic regression confirmed that seroprevalence was more likely in providers who were born outside Canada, had children younger than age 5 years in the household and with an increased number of people in the household. Seroconversion was more likely if the provider worked at centers not using gloves for diaper changes, worked with infants only rather than with toddlers and infants and was < 30 years old, with each factor contributing independently to the model. Cytomegalovirus infection is common in children and providers in Toronto day-care centers.

Education under five in Spain: A study of preschool classes in Seville

This article presents the results of an assessment of the Quality of Infant Education done in the Seville area. Quality was defined in structural and process variables. Structural variables were the ratio, group size and training of teachers; process variables included classroom quality, assessed with the ECERS scale (Harms and Clifford, 1980), and educational practices, observed with OAP (Palacios and Lera, 1991). The sample was composed of 59 preschool units of five-year-old children. Data show a description of the structural and process variables of quality, the interrelations between both sets of variables, and differences in the quality of provisions offered by public and private sectors. The results indicate a general low quality of care and that there is a need for further improvement in the quality of day-care provision.

Implementing the Children Act: The Regulation of Day-care Services for Young Children

This article presents the findings of the first stage of a study undertaken by the Thomas Coram Research Unit at the University of London for the Department of Health. The study aims to monitor and evaluate the implementation of Parts III and X of the Children Act, which relate to the provision of dhy-care and pre-school education for children under eight. The article reports the findings of the first stage of the study on the aspects of implementation involved in the regulation of children's services, which is one of the most significant of the changes heralded by the Act for under-eights' services. Based on the findings of a study in eighteen English authorities and eight Welsh counties, the article outlines the different approaches taken to regulation in terms of organizational structures, degree of consultation with providers, and overall approach to implementing the new system. The response of providers as reported by local authority staff is also discussed. The findings of the study are set in the context of the current policy debate about the role of regulation and the status of the recommendations in the Guidance accompanying the Act. As well as outlining the degree of vanation found among authorities and indicating some of the ‘pressure points’ in implementation, the article raises issues of critical concern about the role of regulation in the context of the private market of day-care provision.

Troubled family interaction during toddlerhood

AbstractTo examine the antecedents and consequences of troubled family interaction during the “terrible twos,” 64 of 69 families rearing firstborn sons who were observed in the child's second year of life were observed again in the child's third year. Cluster analysis of parent and child behavior scores was used once more to identify families whose parent-child interactions during parental efforts to control the child looked “troubled” at 27 and/or 33 months so that chronicity of troubled family interaction across the second and third year of life could be appraised. Nine predictor variables suggested by Belsky's model of the determinants of parenting, measured at the end of the first year of life, along with social class, were found to powerfully discriminate families that were troubled never or once from those who were troubled twice from those who were troubled three to four times across the four measurement occasions. Child externalizing problem behavior at 3 years of age was found to be almost monotonically related to chronicity of troubled family interaction, irrespective of whether problem behaviors were reported by mothers, fathers, or daycare providers.

Social policy as a cause of childhood accidents: the children of lone mothers.

Almost one in five British mothers is a lone mother. Their children have injury rates that are twice those of children in two parent families. In this article the link between lone parenthood and childhood injury is examined. The increased injury rates for the children of lone mothers can be explained by the poverty, poor housing conditions, and social isolation of lone mothers in Britain. The problem of reconciling the demands of paid work with the demands of the unpaid work of childrearing is particularly difficult for lone mothers, who find themselves in a benefit dependent poverty trap. Many such mothers would seek paid work if affordable day care were available. Day care would also provide a safe environment for their children, who are otherwise exposed to the environmental hazards of poor housing. Provision of day care is a social policy that would have important effects on the health and welfare of lone mothers and their children. These effects deserve to be properly evaluated.

Food Safety Program Impacts Kansas

The Centers for Disease Control stated that in 1993 over six million persons became ill due to foodborne illness - half of these from foodservice operations and half from the home. Research has indicated that more education and training is needed to combat foodborne illness. Through funding from the United States Department of Agriculture, the Kansas Cooperative Extension Service Foods and Nutrition Department has certified 75 (75%) of the statewide Extension Agents in Serv Safe food safety training through the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association. The purpose of this project was to determine the extent to which the agents had incorporated food safety training in local programming. A questionnaire was mailed to all agents who had been certified. Forty (53%) of the agents responded. Of the forty, 60% had conducted food safety programming in their local communities with each spending an average of 51 hours. Food safety training had been provided to the following groups: 4-H clubs and camps, churches, service clubs, hospitals, nursing homes, schools and school foodservices, day-care providers, senior citizens, restaurants, hotel/motel foodservices, and welfare recipients. Approximately 2500 persons in Kansas received food safety training. Extension Agents stated that food safety programming had increased their visibility in the community with local health agencies, healthcare operations, dietary managers, and dietitians. Behavioral changes by participants included better handwashing and food handling practices (thawing and cooling of foods, internal temperatures of cooked foods). Agents stated that at least 63% of participants had adopted recommended food handling procedures. Through this programming, food safety knowledge has reduced the risk of foodborne illness and impacted the general welfare of citizens of Kansas.

The effects of a burn prevention program on child-care providers

Since fire and burns are the second leading cause of injury to young children up to age 4, fire and burn prevention education and training must reach the people who care for young children to be effective. Increasingly larger percentages of young children are cared for in out-of-home settings, including child-care centers and family child-care facilities. The majority of children, however, are still cared for by their parents or other relatives, for all or part of the day. Thus, there was a need for an injury prevention program for child-care providers in different settings. A group of experts in a variety of fields developed a burn prevention curriculum as part of a comprehensive injury prevention project. These experts represent a variety of related fields, including injury prevention, early childhood education, child-care administration, instructional design, and evaluation. Operators of child-care facilities, parents, and care providers were involved in the planning and implementation of a training workshop. The program was tested with 141 child-care providers at seven sites. Subjects included child-care center staff, family child-care operators, and parents of young children. Materials included an instructor manual, coursebook, video, and test booklet. Subjects' knowledge, attitudes, and practices intentions were tested before and after the training. Subjects also completed a program evaluation. Results indicated significant improvement in knowledge, attitudes, and practices intentions for the total group and for subjects at each site. Gains made by center staff and family day-care providers were significant on all three measures, as they were for parents on knowledge and practices. Measures of attitudes and injury prevention practices indicated a high level of acceptance of program goals. A large majority of the subjects said the program was useful and interesting. An analysis of the test results by objective indicated that subjects had improved their knowledge scores on each objective. They had the highest achievement on topics related to understanding characteristics of burns and understanding the hazards and prevention techniques related to smoke, matches, lighters, and hot surface burns. An important finding was that child-care providers in different environments can be instructed in burn prevention using the same program. Injuries are not accidents. If they were random, unpredictable acts of God, it would make little sense to talk about preventing them. But injuries can be scientifically understood and societally controlled by modifying physical agents, environments, and behaviors. Injury is not mysterious. It will take a concerted effort by a large and varied group of individuals in order for injury prevention to succeed.

The Irresponsible State? The Politics of Child Daycare Provision in Britain

This article seeks to shed light on the scarcity of public child daycare provision in Britain. Following a brief account of the development of policy since the Second World War, it notes the institutional and discursive fragmentation of the process through which child-care policy has been resolved. However, it concentrates on the way that process has been shaped by the intersection of two variables, the type of issue constituted by child care and the British national policy-making style. It argues that public child-care provision is both a ‘redistributive’ issue, and as such particularly unappealing to recent Conservative governments, and an issue that concerns the family, invoking an ‘ideology of motherhood’. Moreover, national policy style has entailed a reluctance to intervene either in the labour market or in the ‘private’ family sphere. This combination of issue type and policy-making tradition has conspired to marginalize child care on the national policy agenda.

Charity, Goodwill and Community Spirit: Day Care Provisions for Older Adults in a Suburban Community

This paper examines the provision of day care for frail aged people and people with disabilities in a suburban community of approximately 200,000 people in New South Wales. Using defined criteria, sixteen different day care centres providing approximately 680 day places per week for people remaining at home were identified. These centres are categorised according to differences in their source of funding and their affiliation with existing services. It is argued that although these differences explain variations in the operation of each of the centres, there were also marked similarities in the way each of the services operates which reflect the reliance on an often ad hoc series of local initiatives for the development of community support services. The study also highlights a number of issues for further research.

Parental Discipline Mistakes

their families or society. We assume that most children learn (i.e., are taught) to behave appropriately (and inappropriately). Such teaching is one aspect of child rearing, and par ents play a key role in disciplining or teaching their children to behave ac cording to a wide range of rules. Although parental rules vary across families, children's ages, cul tures, and historical periods, most people know a rule when they hear one. Common rules for children in American families today include these: Don't hurt other people; do what your parents tell you to do; don't ask loudly in the grocery store, Why is that man so fat, Mommy?; don't play with the telephone; don't lie; come home on time; do your homework before you watch televi sion; and don't pester your sister. When children do not behave ac cording to the rules, we say they have misbehaved. When parents use ineffective strategies to manage mis behavior, we say they have made discipline mistakes. Parents are undoubtedly not the only people who significantly influ ence children's misbehavior. Sib lings, day-care providers, teachers, baby-sitters, grandparents, and peers are participants in child rear

Infectious Disease in Child Day Care: An Overview

In the early 1980s, the Minnesota Department of Health began to address the growing concern of the risk of infectious diseases in child day care by initiating a planning process that resulted in the first national symposium on infectious diseases in child day care. That symposium, which was held in June 1984 in Minneapolis, highlighted the fact that different vocabularies and points of reference would need to be bridged if day-care providers and regulators, clinicians, and public health practitioners are to work side-by-side in defining the risk of infectious diseases in day care and in developing appropriate prevention strategies.1 As a result of this meeting, the Minnesota Public Health Association submitted a resolution to the American Public Health Association (APHA) in the fall of 1984, stating that child-care standards, especially in the area of prevention of infectious diseases, were needed. This resolution, together with a simultaneous recommendation from the APHA's Maternal and Child Health Section for the development of health and safety standards for out-of-home child-care facilities, began a process which eventually led to the monumental effort now known as the American Public Health Association/American Academy of Pediatrics, National Health and Safety Performance Standards: Guidelines for Out-of-Home Child Care Programs.2 In June, 1992, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sponsored the "International Conference on Child Day Care Health: Science, Prevention and Practice," a historic meeting bringing together concerned individuals from many disciplines to further define and set the future agenda for the science, prevention and practice of child day-care health.