| Summary: |
The coverage rate of child care services for children under 3 years of age has been increasing in the last 15 years (13% in 1996 [1]; 35% in 2010 [2]). The occupancy rate of child care centers was of 89% in 2009 [2]. These numbers seem to indicate that child care centers are an important resource for parents. So, examination on how child care can best support child development is warranted. Research in several countries have demonstrated a positive association between the child care quality and child short-term and long-term developmental outcomes [3][5][6]. For example, our own previous studies with 1 and 2-year-old children showed that child care quality and teachers' interactive behaviors influence child engagement and development [7][8]. Recently, in a large-scale longitudinal study (USA), it was found that quality and quantity of child care were linked to adolescent functioning at age 15, reinforcing long-term effects found in other studies [9]. In addition, research conducted in Portugal by these team members has also examined the quality of child care, contributing to the current knowledge and for the validation of quality observational measures [10][11]. However, classrooms for children below 12 months were not observed in any of these Portuguese studies.
From a systemic point of view, and following Bronfenbrenner's theory [12], although the characteristics of each of the immediate settings (microsystems) are important for child development, the transactions between them (mesosystem) are also relevant. However, the research addressing the so called mesosystem is scarce, specially in Portugal. Internationally, some studies have been showing the importance of parent-caregivers communication, and parent attitudes and behaviors in child transition to child care [13][14][15], but little is known about links between parent-caregivers communication and infant's adjustment. From a systemic perspective understanding these links is crucial because early expe  |
Summary
The coverage rate of child care services for children under 3 years of age has been increasing in the last 15 years (13% in 1996 [1]; 35% in 2010 [2]). The occupancy rate of child care centers was of 89% in 2009 [2]. These numbers seem to indicate that child care centers are an important resource for parents. So, examination on how child care can best support child development is warranted. Research in several countries have demonstrated a positive association between the child care quality and child short-term and long-term developmental outcomes [3][5][6]. For example, our own previous studies with 1 and 2-year-old children showed that child care quality and teachers' interactive behaviors influence child engagement and development [7][8]. Recently, in a large-scale longitudinal study (USA), it was found that quality and quantity of child care were linked to adolescent functioning at age 15, reinforcing long-term effects found in other studies [9]. In addition, research conducted in Portugal by these team members has also examined the quality of child care, contributing to the current knowledge and for the validation of quality observational measures [10][11]. However, classrooms for children below 12 months were not observed in any of these Portuguese studies.
From a systemic point of view, and following Bronfenbrenner's theory [12], although the characteristics of each of the immediate settings (microsystems) are important for child development, the transactions between them (mesosystem) are also relevant. However, the research addressing the so called mesosystem is scarce, specially in Portugal. Internationally, some studies have been showing the importance of parent-caregivers communication, and parent attitudes and behaviors in child transition to child care [13][14][15], but little is known about links between parent-caregivers communication and infant's adjustment. From a systemic perspective understanding these links is crucial because early experiences, in the first year of life, set the stage for further learning and development [16].
Parent-caregiver communication, especially when sharing information about the child, may establish a link between home and child care, allowing caregivers and parents to provide high-quality care, contributing to child adjustment [14]. It is extremely important to develop research that contributes to this knowledge and can support the work of teachers who are responsible for the infants' classrooms. The main purpose of this research is to investigate infant's transition to child care in the first year of life, examining the extent to which variables of the family, child care and family-caregiver communication influence infant adjustment (i.e., settling, involvement in the classroom, adaptive behavior), after controlling for several variables. Specifically, it is intended to (a) describe child care experiences over the period of transition; (b) examine parent-caregiver communication and its association with child adjustment, after controlling for child care and home environment; and (c) examine whether child adjustment to child care is associated with child care characteristics, family environment, and parent-caregiver communication, after controlling for child variables. In this study, the transition to child care is conceptualized as involving four dimensions over time: child care, family environment, parent-caregiver communication, and infant adjustment.
Participants, randomly selected, will include (a) 90 classrooms for infants from 90 child care centers in the district of Porto, (b) teach |