Implications of research into attachments and day care

In the UK in 2004 the Government announced the National Childcare Strategy offering free state nursery to all three and four year olds and providing guidelines for what they should be taught!  Much of this and other government and state initiatives in the past 50 years has stemmed from psychological research into the importance of attachments and what constitute good day care.

Children’s hospital

If as a child you were unfortunate enough to be hospitalised, even as late as the 1960s, there would be strict rules applied to parental visiting times and limits placed on our long parents could spend with their children.  Following the findings of Robertson and Robertson’s study that children require continuing emotional care and as much contact as possible with natural parents, visiting hours were extended.  Today hospitals sometimes allow around the clock visiting hours. 

Deferred adoption?

Mothers who were intent on having their children adopted used to still be encouraged to nurse them in the first few weeks and months of life before they were adopted.  This would result in either a broken bond when they were moved or in no attachment being made at all because of the lack of sensitive responsiveness on the part of the unwilling mother.  Today, thanks to research into attachment behaviour, adoption usually occurs in the first few weeks of life.

Teaching grandmother to suck eggs

Some psychologists have suggested that knowledge of attachments can be used to improve parenting skills.  For example:

Juffer et al (1997) conducted a study aimed at seeing whether adoptive parents could be taught sensitive responsiveness.

Method

Ninety families were split into three groups of thirty.  Thirty received no training, thirty received training via a self-help booklet and thirty received training via being filmed interacting with children and then watching the footage with an expert who advised on better techniques. 

Findings and conclusions

The first two groups control and training via a booklet showed no differences in responsiveness to the general population, whereas those trained by human intervention were significantly improved which crucially led to a more secure bond being formed.  The researchers concluded that not only could sensitive responsiveness be taught but it did indeed improve quality of attachment.

Improving day care

The most researched area of policy based on attachment research however has been into ways of improving day care.  What constitutes good care isn’t easy to define  but the following variables seem important:

Plenty of verbal interaction, especially between the child and carer which seems to result in higher quality day care.  However, it is important to mention that verbal interaction between parent and child tends to be more complex and beneficial simply because they can provide undivided attention to their children rather than have to divide it between many.

Sensitive responsiveness of the carers is, according to the NICHD, the single most important factor.  In one survey they discovered that only 23% of carers provided ‘highly sensitive’ care with 20% being ‘emotionally detached’ from the children in their care.

Consistency of care is also important.  Low staff turnover provides opportunities for children to form attachments with the care givers.

Well qualified staff: Sylva et al (2003) found it was particularly important for the day care centre manager to be wee trained. 

Child/staff ratios should be kept low.  The NICHD recommend no higher than 3 children to each carer.  Similarly children should be kept in small groups so fewer strangers need to be dealt with.

Mixed age groups are also good for the child’s social development since, according to Clarke-Stewart et al (1994) younger children get the opportunity to watch and learn from the social interactions of the older children.

Educational toys will help improve the child’s cognitive development. 

Child/day care fit

Some children will benefit more from day care than others.  Similarly the type of day care required will vary from child to child, depending on their temperament and upon the home environment.  Parents should therefore, whenever possible try to find the appropriate day care for their child.

For example, more aggressive children may be better off placed in day care homes or receive at home care rather than be placed in larger day care centres. 

However, children from very poor backgrounds seem to be less aggressive when in larger groups than when kept at home.  Perhaps for these larger day care centres may be beneficial. 

Children who attend group day care tend to develop better social skills since they are mixing with larger groups of peers.  An only-child may benefit more from this opportunity than a child from a larger family who has lots of siblings to play with. 

Finally… a thought for the mothers

It isn’t just the child who may suffer the effects of day care but also the parents and particularly the mother.  Mothers who return to full-time employment within a year of giving birth often feel guilt and anxiety, worrying that their child may become less securely attached.  However, by staying at home they run the risk (Brown and Harris 1978) of becoming depressed, presumably because of the social isolation they experience. 

The provision of workplace nurseries may help reduce the worst effects providing opportunities for mothers to spend more time with their kiddies whilst at work.