Are there differences in parents' child care search and decision-making processes?

• In Event: Poster Session 05
  In Poster Session: PS 05 Topic - Social Policy

Abstract

In the United States, parents return to the workplace soon after having a child, which has resulted in an increased need for non-parental early care and education (ECE) programs. In 2012, over 60% of children under age 5 attended some form of non-parental ECE arrangements (NSECE Project Team, 2016). Although most parents report having difficulties finding quality child care, they typically spend less than one week searching for child care and consider only a few options (Forry et al., 2014). Previous studies have largely focused on parents’ preferences of child care characteristics (e.g., quality, cost, location). However, little is known about how parents search for child care.
Parental search strategies—including the type of programs that parents consider, the number of programs that parents consider, and information sources—play important roles in parents’ decision-making processes. Using the National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) dataset, the present study examined the relationship between parental search strategies and ECE decisions. This study focused on parents of preschoolers who have conducted an ECE search in the past 24 months (N = 500). Our research questions are: (1) What are the differences in family and community characteristics between parents who consider one provider and parents who consider more than one provider? (2) How do parents’ search strategies affect the type of care chosen?
Descriptive statistics show that 43.1% parents consider only one provider during their child care search (see Table 1). Logistic regression analysis was conducted to answer the first question. Parents' perceptions of ECE arrangements, parental preferences of child care characteristics, and a group of family and community characteristics significantly predicted the number of providers that parents consider. After controlling for family and community characteristics, no significant relationship was found between the availability of child care supply and the number of child care providers that parents consider.
Multinomial logistic regression was performed to examine the association of factors with parents’ final child care choices (see Table 2). Family child care (FCC) and family, friend, and neighbor (FFN) care were compared to center-based child care (CBCC). These results suggest that parents with older children are more likely to use CBCC than FFC and FFN care. Compared to White families, Hispanic families are more likely to choose CBCC. However, parents who primarily spoke other languages than English are seven times more likely to choose FCC care. Parents who used referral agencies and parents who used online searches are more likely to use FCC.
Single-parent families and families that prioritize costs tend to use FFN care. In contrast, parents who considered only one provider during their ECE search are less likely to use FFN care. Parents received child care subsidies tend to use CBCC than FFN care. Also, the result of chi-square test shows that parents are more likely to use an ECE arrangement if they know a provider in it through personal relationships. The findings of this study will guide states’ policies to develop effective programs to support families in ECE search.

Authors

• Jing Tang, Child Trends -Maryland
  Presenting Author

• Rena Hallam, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jessica Francis, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author