NICHD Early Child Care Research Network. (2002). Child-care structure>process>outcome: Direct and indirect effects of child-care quality on young children's development. Psychological Science, 13.
With data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care, we used Structural Equation Modeling to test paths from structural indicators of child-care quality, specifically caregiver training and child-staff ratio, through a process indicator to child outcomes. There were three main findings: (a) Quality of maternal caregiving was the strongest predictor of cognitive competence, as well as caregivers’ ratings of social competence; (b) Quality of non-maternal caregiving was associated with cognitive competence and caregivers’ ratings of social competence; and (c) there was a mediated path from both caregiver training and child-staff ratio through quality of non-maternal caregiving to cognitive competence as well as to caregivers’ ratings of social competence that was not accounted for entirely by family variables. These findings provide empirical support for policies that improve state regulations for caregiver training and child-staff ratios.
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