This study, using a limited ecological model, will investigate certain developmental outcomes associated with patterns of early child care. The central questions is how and to what extent various combinations of care inside and outside the home influence the developmental trajectories of young children. The model uses a concept of alternate child care which is continuous rather than dichotomous with regard to quantity as well as quality. This concept mandates a research design which places children along this continuum, rather than assigning them to one of two theoretically completely separable groups, and examines associated developmental outcomes. Likewise, it specifies the necessity of looking at alternate care within the context of parental history (including early child care) and personality, current family stresses and supports, quality of home care, and extent and quality of alternate care utilized. The study will follow a cohort sample of all infants born during a one-month period in two Little Rock hospitals whose parents consent to participate. Contact with the families will be made every three months, alternately in person and by telephone, until the children reach 42 months of age. At all contacts, information will be obtained about the family, the child, and any alternate care received by the child during the interim. Attachment of the child to the parents, and, likewise, attachment of the parents to the child, will be monitored at several points during the early years rather than in a single assessment. This reciprocal attachment will be examined both as an intervening variable which can influence the impact of alternate care on the children and as a dependent variable. The major dependent variables assessed in the children will be developmental level, health, and social competence. The investigators are enthusiastic about participating in the collaborative project and will modify planned assessment instruments and the assessment timetable to accommodate the shared protocol.
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