Child care quality matters

Love et al. (August 2003). Child care quality matters: how conclusions may vary with context. Child Development, 74, 4, 1021-1033.

A report from the NICHD concluded that more time spent in a variety of nonmaternal care arrangements leads to more externalizing behavior problems, regardless of child care quality. Authors were skeptical and tested the generalizability of these findings with 3 other studies. These new findings suggest that quality of child care is an important factor influencing children's development, and that quality may be an important moderator of the amount of time in care.