AEG Blog

A long-term study by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development indicates that children who receive low-quality childcare during the first four and a half years of their lives show continued problems on into adolescence.

As reported in The Washington Post in Study finds that effects of low-quality child care last into adolescence, the federally funded study has followed over 1,300 children since their infancy in 1991.

The researchers collected detailed information about the type and quality of care the children were receiving through age 4 1/2 , including whether their custodians were parents, other relatives, nannies, babysitters or day-care centers in or outside a home, as well as the number of hours of which kind of care each child received. The subjects underwent tests assessing their academic and cognitive skills, and parents and teachers answered questionnaires about each child's behavior. The quality was assessed based on observations of a host of factors, including the caregivers' warmth, sensitivity, emotional support and how much cognitive stimulation they provided.

Higher-quality care was linked to children having fewer behavior problems as they grew older as well as higher achievement in areas such as math, reading and other cognitive skills. Children who spent time in low-quality care suffered the negative effects of it regardless of the family's socioeconomic standing.

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