Mapping the Dimensions of Family and Childcare Instability for Infants and Toddlers

• In Event: 64.086 - MTCC Roundtable Session 27
  In Roundtable Session: 64.086-6 - Access to Childcare

Abstract

Growing empirical evidence demonstrates that the first few years of life are a vulnerable and sensitive period, in which exposure to instability in home and child care settings have particularly detrimental effects on development. In this study, we applied social sequence analysis (Abbott, 1995; Shabahan, 2000) to data from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study (BabyFACES; Vogel & Boller, 2009-2012) for the purpose of identifying the patterns of family and child care instability which exist and in infant and toddler families. Preliminary findings indicate that a substantial number of children experience instability in family and child care settings. Furthermore, instability in one setting (e.g., family) is likely to be associated with instability in another setting.

Authors

• Shinyoung Jeon, University of Oklahoma

• Timothy G. Ford, University of Oklahoma

• Kyong-Ah Kwon

• Ji Young Choi, Iowa State University