Grantees
Pia Caronongan | Yoonsook Ha | Julio Guzman | Lisa Badanes
Project Title:
Examining the Effects of Subsidy Eligibility on Parent Employment, Child Care Arrangements and Children’s Development
Mentor:
Hirokazu Yoshikawa
Project Funding Years:
2007-2008
University Affiliation:
Harvard University
Project Abstract:
Federal law limits eligibility of child care subsidy receipt to a maximum of 85% of a state’s median income, but states may choose to set thresholds below this level. As a result, there is a substantial amount of variation in the thresholds states set and variation within states, over time. This variation in eligibility will be used in the present study to predict changes in parent employment, child care arrangements and child outcomes. Specifically, this project will examine the impact of eligibility for child care subsidies, as determined by state income eligibility thresholds, on parents’ labor force participation and child care choices. In addition, the study will investigate whether the change in child care and parent employment experiences by eligible families has subsequent effects on child behavior and school readiness.
Measures:
Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) State Plans
National Household Education Survey (NHES)
National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)
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Project Title:
The Role of Child Care Subsidies in the Economic Well-Being of Low-Income Families
Mentor:
Daniel Meyer
Project Funding Years:
2007-2008
University Affiliation:
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Project Abstract:
This project will explore the dynamics of child care subsidy use among low-income families as well as examine the factors associated with stable (long-term) subsidy use and positive economic outcomes at the exit of subsidy receipt. In addition, this research will provide estimates in the extent to which child care subsidy receipt is associated with changes in mothers' earnings and how these relationships differ (or not) across racial/ethnic subgroups. The results will provide needed information regarding long-term patterns of child care subsidy receipt in Wisconsin and the extent to which subsidies contribute to self-sufficiency for low-income working families.
Sample:
Families that applied for child care subsidies in Wisconsin in 2000
Measures:
Wisconsin administrative data
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Project Title:
Child Care Subsidies and the Work Effort of Single Mothers
Mentor:
Derek Neal
Project Funding Years:
2007-2008
University Affiliation:
University of Chicago
Project Abstract:
Post-welfare reform has introduced a new set of policy questions around child care subsidy receipt. The present study will address policy relevant questions that seek to better articulate the relationships between single-mothers’ decisions about work, child care and subsidy access. In addition, the study will explore the relative importance of process and structural measures of child care quality in supporting children’s development.
Sample:
Unmarried mothers with at least one child under age 13
Measures:
Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) Program Records
National Survey of American Families (NSAF)
Early Childhood Longitudinal Study birth cohort (ECLS-B)
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Project Title:
Goodness of Fit in Child Care: Examining the Contributions of Child and Caregiver Characteristics to Stress Reactivity
Mentor:
Sarah Watamura
Project Funding Years:
2007-2009
University Affiliation:
University of Denver
Project Abstract:
Previous work has repeatedly shown that full-day child care is associated with increased physiological stress for many young children. Efforts to understand this phenomenon have demonstrated that quality of caregiving is important for predicting the proportion of children who exhibit a rising pattern of the stress-sensitive hormone cortisol across the day at child care. Understanding which children find child care particularly stressful and what cargiving behaviors are most important for buffering them from stress is badly needed.
The present study will specifically examine whether 1) child temperament and attachment to parents predict cortisol reactivity across the day at child care, 2) whether secure attachment to child care providers buffers children against the stress reactivity and 3) whether child care providers are able to buffer stress reactivity in a structured one-on-one interaction.
Sample:
15 Head Start classrooms
15 non-Head Start and non-university affiliated classrooms
170 families, with oversample of 50 Mexican-origin families
Measures:
Cortisol samples collected from children’s saliva across the day
Attachment Q-set
Semi-structured Interaction
Measures of Sensitive and Intrusiveness
Child Behavioral Questionnaire/ Child Behavior Checklist
Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale- Revised
Parent Survey
Center Director Survey