• Association of Child Care Type, Intensity, and Quality With Child Outcomes
  Presented by: Kristin S. Abner, Rachel A. Gordon, Sanders Korenman, Robert Kaestner

• Infant Simulators in Parenting Class: Student Performance, Difficulty, and Attitudes
  Presented by: Tammy S. Harpel

• Infant Nighttime Care: What Should We Consider
  Presented by: Robin Gay Yaure, Wendy Middlemiss, Erron Huey

• Training Program: Communicating about Infant Nighttime Care Across Diversity
  Presented by: Wendy Middlemiss, Robin Yaure, James J. McKenna, Peter Fleming, Katherine Green, Cynthia Frosch, Marnie Stone, Patrick Ament, Amanda Moske, Laura Nathans, Tina Sasser, Delores Smith

Presentations from Education and Enrichment and Family Science Sections and Affiliate Councils

Abstracts

Association of Child Care Type, Intensity, and Quality With Child Outcomes

Presented by: Kristin S. Abner, Rachel A. Gordon, Sanders Korenman, Robert Kaestner

We replicate studies in a nationally representative sample of preschools and extend prior studies by looking at child outcomes among types of care, intensity, and  adjusting for domain-specific child care quality. Our findings are consistent with the literature that children in centers have higher average cognitive scores, but poorer behavior and health than in other types of care.  Adjusting for child care quality generally does not explain the associations of type of care with outcomes, with the exception of language and literacy of children in centers. We discuss these findings in relation to strategies aimed at reducing school readiness gaps.

Infant Simulators in Parenting Class: Student Performance, Difficulty, and Attitudes

Presented by: Tammy S. Harpel

This study assessed the effects of an infant simulator assignment on attitudes about parenting among undergraduates and factors associated with the undergraduates' caregiving performance. Ninety three undergraduate students participated in the study.  While the hypotheses about caregiving performance were not supported, student responses did indicate that the experience helped them realize the difficulty involved in being a parent, their own lack of readiness to be a parent, and their desire to wait until later to have children.  In addition, students learned that parenting is a demanding, selfless role that requires patience and results in a lack of sleep.

Infant Nighttime Care: What Should We Consider

Presented by: Robin Gay Yaure, Wendy Middlemiss, Erron Huey

Professional recommendations for infant nighttime care are conflicting. Although much of the research literature supports a self-settling approach, many parents' nighttime practices include some parental presence. This presentation will describe the conflicting evidence and then report on a study examining maternal responses to these approaches as well as mothers' and infants' physiological experiences of their sleep routine and infants' daytime attachment behaviors. Maternal nonresponsiveness was associated with greater stress reactivity for infants who exhibited secure attachment behaviors. Patterns of care were associated with mothers' endorsement of practice statements. Need for practitioners to provide advice encompassing both nighttime practices was supported.

Training Program: Communicating about Infant Nighttime Care across Diversity

Presented by: Wendy Middlemiss, Robin Yaure, James J. McKenna, Peter Fleming, Katherine Green, Cynthia Frosch, Marnie Stone, Patrick Ament, Amanda Moske, Laura Nathans, Tina Sasser, Delores Smith

This presentation introduces participants to a training intervention designed to facilitate practitioner-parent discussions of infant nighttime care. The focus of the Workshop is to encourage practitioners to share information about nighttime care that integrates best practice advice and parents' preferences for care to facilitate safe practices and support beneficial to infant outcomes. Panelists will present outcomes from piloted use of the practitioner training program completed with early childhood intervention specialists and pediatricians, and the families with whom they interact. The training intervention was founded on training workshops in New Zealand and Australia.