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V. EARLY HEAD START INFLUENCES ON PARENTING
One of the major goals of most Early Head Start research programs is to encourage close, supportive relationships between parents and their infants and toddlers, both for their own sake and because such relationships constitute an important pathway for children's development. Close relationships are necessary to provide infants and toddlers with the emotional support to develop trusting relationships with important adults in their lives, to learn to regulate their emotional responses, and to play cooperatively with their peers. Parent-child relationships that also include talking, reading, and encouragement of new developmental experiences can promote the cognitive development of infants and toddlers. A strong parent-child bond can support and extend the development of infants and toddlers, both during the Early Head Start program period, and into the future, well beyond the point at which Early Head Start services end. The participation of fathers is also important for children's well-being, and Early Head Start programs often made special efforts to involve fathers. At the conclusion of this chapter, we describe activities of the men in the lives of Early Head Start children.
To build supportive parent-child relationships, program staff worked with parents and their infants and toddlers during home visits, group socializations, parent education meetings, and exchanges in center-based settings to model adult-child interactions that support positive child development and focus on positive parenting approaches. For these reasons, the Early Head Start impact study included an array of measures that would enable us to examine the impacts of Early Head Start on the home environment, parenting behavior, and parents' knowledge of infant-toddler development. These are the focus of this chapter.
A. HYPOTHESES AND BRIEF SUMMARY OF INTERIM FINDINGS
Many of the Early Head Start research programs reported that a major program goal is to help families build supportive parent-child relationships. Therefore, after parents have had some experience in the program, we would expect to find that they show more positive and supportive parenting behaviors and fewer negative or harsh parenting behaviors than do parents in the control group.
The interim findings reported in this chapter suggest that Early Head Start did increase parents' emotionally supportive parenting behaviors and reduce the incidence of some but not all of the negative parenting behaviors we measured. In addition, we found that Early Head Start parents were more likely than control group parents to provide a home environment that stimulates cognitive development, language development, and literacy, and to engage in parenting behaviors, such as regular reading to the child, that reinforce these goals.
Many of the programs also identified a major program goal as improving parents' knowledge of child development. Better knowledge of typical developmental milestones at each age and what to expect from children behaviorally at each age can help parents to understand their children's perspectives, form reasonable age-appropriate expectations, and interact more positively with them. Discussing positive strategies for preventing or defusing predictable conflicts with children (such as a temper tantrum in a public place or the child's refusal to eat a meal) can help prepare parents to respond more constructively when these situations arise. Programs provided information on child development through group parenting education sessions and individual home visits. We also expect that home visitors addressed issues of child safety in the home in their meetings with parents. In general, we expect stronger impacts on parenting knowledge than on behavior and the home environment, because it is easier to impart greater knowledge of a topic like child development or behavior management strategies than it is to affect the associated behavior.
Our interim findings suggest that when children were 2 years old, mothers who had participated in Early Head Start had greater knowledge of the typical behavior and development of a 2-year-old child and that they were more likely to suggest positive discipline strategies to defuse predictable conflicts with their toddlers. However, we found no evidence that Early Head Start had an impact on child safety practices in the home.
Programs that delivered services mainly through home visits had many opportunities to help parents develop supportive relationships with their children through modeling responses to the child's behavior during home visits and group socializations, by responding to questions that parents have during the visits, and through the curriculum that structured the home visits. Therefore, we expect home-based programs to have an impact on a range of parenting behavior and knowledge. The interim findings discussed in this chapter suggest that home-based Early Head Start programs increased parents' emotional support for the child, improved the stimulation of cognitive and language development through home environment and parenting behavior, and reduced some negative parenting behavior. Home-based Early Head Start programs also increased knowledge of child development but had little impact on parents' reported discipline strategies.
Parents in center-based programs may have more frequent opportunities to observe staff modeling positive interactions with children through the daily dropping-off and picking-up of children at the center. Programs that provided mainly center-based services may have had fewer opportunities than home-based programs to provide parents with information about children's development; however, these programs offered parent education meetings on a regular basis. Center-based programs, by design, have less direct and intensive contact with parents (primarily in parent meetings and two home visits per year) than home-based programs, which aim to meet with parents weekly for at least an hour.
Our interim findings suggest that center-based Early Head Start programs had no impacts on emotional support for the child or on negative parenting behavior, although in the area of cognitive and language stimulation, Early Head Start had a positive impact on structuring the child's day (setting a bedtime) and promoting more frequent reading. Center-based Early Head Start programs had no impact on knowledge of child development, but did lead parents to suggest more positive discipline strategies and avoid more punitive strategies.
Parents in programs that provided a mixed approach, in which parents could receive either home visits or center-based services (or a mix of these services at the same time or over time), may have had an opportunity to benefit from parenting support in ways characteristic of both center- and home-based program approaches. Our interim findings suggest that mixed Early Head Start programs had a consistent pattern of positive impacts on parenting behavior and knowledge. Parents in mixed programs were more emotionally supportive of the child, created a home environment that provided more stimulation for language and learning, engaged in behaviors that supported language and learning, and were less likely to exhibit negative parenting behaviors. Mixed Early Head Start programs also had a positive impact on parents' knowledge of infant-toddler development.
Not only does the Early Head Start evaluation encompass programs following a variety of approaches and situated in many different geographic areas, but it also includes programs that vary in implementation levels. The Early Head Start evaluation was launched shortly after the federal program began, and not all of the local programs had reached a level of "full implementation" of the Head Start Program Performance Standards (see Chapter I). We expect that programs that are more successful in meeting the Head Start performance standards for the types, quantity, and quality of services to families will have stronger impacts on parenting behavior and knowledge than programs that did not completely meet these implementation standards during the evaluation period.
Our interim findings suggest that implementation status is directly related to a pattern of positive impacts of Early Head Start on parenting outcomes. Programs that were early implementers had a pattern of strong impacts on a wide range of parenting behavior and knowledge, whereas those programs that were later or incomplete implementers showed substantially fewer statistically significant effects.
B. MEASURES OF PARENTING
To measure the impacts of Early Head Start on parenting behavior and the home environment, we have tapped three important areas:
- Emotional support, which includes the parent's warmth and affection toward the child, positive feelings about the child that are conveyed to others, and appropriate responses to needs that the child communicates
- Stimulation of learning and language, which includes the mother providing a variety of toys that foster development, structuring the child's environment to promote learning, and talking and reading to the child regularly, and her approach to teaching the child a new task
- Negative aspects of parenting, which include insensitivity, emotional detachment from the child, hostility, anger, and punitiveness
We used several sources of measures of parenting behavior and the home environment, including parent reports; interviewer observations of the parent's behavior toward the child during the interview; and coding of videotaped, semi-structured parent-child interactions.1 Multiple measurement sources are important if we are to obtain an accurate picture of parenting. Some parenting practices are commonly understood to be either beneficial or harmful to children, but parents might not always engage in the beneficial ones or might sometimes exhibit a harsh practice. Nevertheless, parents may respond to questions about their behavior in ways that are socially desirable, but that do not accurately reflect their behavior. Multiple measurement sources that include independent observations help to guard against this possibility.
We assessed parenting knowledge in three areas: (1) knowledge of infant-toddler development and developmental milestones; (2) knowledge of positive discipline strategies for infants and toddlers; and (3) safety practices. All of these were assessed by direct parent report.
C. GLOBAL IMPACTS ON PARENTING
Early Head Start had modest, positive impacts on several dimensions of parenting. In this section, we first discuss program impacts on parenting behavior and the home environment, which encompass the activities of parents with children and the qualities of the home environment. We discuss program impacts on parenting knowledge separately, because knowledge may not always be consistent with behavior.
1. Parenting Behavior and the Home Environment
Parenting behavior includes both positive behavior, or parenting that is emotionally or cognitively supportive, and negative behavior, or parenting that is insensitive, hostile, or punitive. In this section, we discuss Early Head Start impacts on emotionally supportive behavior, the home environment and stimulation of language and learning, and negative parenting behavior.
a. Parent Emotional Support for the Child
Early Head Start had modest, positive impacts on the emotional support parents showed toward the child based on observational measures of parent behavior during the in-home interview and assessment at 24 months of age (see Box V.1). Early Head Start had a positive impact on emotional responsivity toward the child at 24 months of age, as observed by the interviewer during the in-home parent interview (see Table V.1). Parents in Early Head Start programs were more likely to praise their child and express warmth and affection toward their child during the interview. Early Head Start programs also had a positive impact on parents' supportiveness during parent-child structured play. In contrast with control-group parents, parents in Early Head Start programs were more likely to show enjoyment of the child, sensitivity to the child's needs, and an effort to extend play to stimulate cognitive and language development as they played with their children.
| BOX V.1 MEASURES OF EMOTIONAL SUPPORT Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) - measures the quality of stimulation and support available to a child in the home environment (Bradley and Caldwell 1984). Information needed to score the inventory is obtained through a combination of interview and observation conducted in the home with the child's parent while the child is present. We used the Infant version of the HOME inventory at the 24-month assessment. The HOME Infant version includes 45 items. We derived four subscales from this assessment, with one related to emotional support: Emotional Responsivity - Measures responsive and supportive parenting behavior observed by the interviewer during the home visit. Items in this subscale are based entirely on interviewer observations of the parent and child during the interview, and include such items as whether the mother praised the child, whether she expressed warmth and affection toward the child, and whether she responded verbally to the child's verbalizations during the interview. Scores can range from 0, if none of the positive behaviors were observed, to 7, if all of the behaviors were observed. Parent Behavior during Parent-Child Structured Play - measures the parent's behavior with the child during a structured play task. The parent and child were given three bags of interesting toys and asked to play with the toys in sequence. The structured play task was videotaped, and child and parent behaviors were coded by child development researchers according to strict protocols (see Appendix C). This assessment was originally used in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care (NICHD Early Child Care Research Network 1999). Four aspects of the parent's behavior with the child were rated on a seven-point scale, with one aspect related to emotional support: Supportiveness - this composite measure is an average of parental sensitivity, cognitive stimulation, and positive regard during play with the child. Sensitivity includes such behavior as acknowledgement of the child's affect, vocalizations, and activity; facilitating the child's play; changing the pace of play when the child seems under-stimulated or over-excited; and demonstrating developmentally appropriate expectations of behavior. Cognitive stimulation involves taking advantage of the activities and toys to facilitate learning, development, and achievement; for example, by encouraging the child to talk about the materials, by encouraging play in ways that illustrate or teach concepts such as colors or sizes, and by using language to label the child's experiences or actions, to ask questions about the toys, to present activities in an organized series of steps, and to elaborate on the pictures in books or unique attributes of objects. Positive regard includes praising the child, smiling or laughing with the child, expressing affection, showing empathy for the child's distress, and showing clear enjoyment of the child. |
| Outcome |
Program Group Participantsa |
Control |
Estimated Impact Per Participantc |
Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME): Emotional Responsivity e | 6.2 |
6.1 |
.1* |
8.1 |
| Parent-Child Structured Play: Supportivenessf | 4.1 |
3.9 |
.1** |
13.5 |
| Sample Size | ||||
| Parent Interview | 1,092 | 1,021 | 2,113 | |
| Parent-Child Interactions | 913 | 819 | 1,732 | |
| SOURCE: Parent
interviews and assessments of semi-structured parent-child interactions
conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. NOTE: All impact estimates were calculated using regression models, where each site was weighted equally. aA participant is defined as a program group member who received more than one Early Head Start home visit, met with an Early Head Start case manager more than once, received at least two weeks of Early Head Start center-based care, and/or participated in Early Head Start group parent-child activities.(back) bThe control group mean is the mean for the control group members who would have participated in Early Head Start if they had instead been assigned to the program group. This unobserved mean was estimated as the difference between the program group mean for participants and the impact per participant.(back) cThe estimated impact per participant is measured as the estimated impact per eligible applicant divided by the proportion of program group members who participated in Early Head Start services (which varied by site). The estimated impact per eligible applicant is measured as the difference between the regression-adjusted means for all program and control group members.(back) dThe effect size was calculated by dividing the estimated impact per participant by the standard deviation of the outcome measure for the control group times 100 (that is, it is the impact expressed as a percentage of the standard deviation).(back) eBehaviors are observed during the HOME assessment and rated on a yes/no scale by the Interviewer/ Assessor.(back) fBehaviors are observed during the videotaped parent-child structured play task and coded on a seven-point scale.(back) *Significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. **Significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test |
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b. Parent Stimulation of Language and Learning
Early Head Start had positive impacts on many aspects of parent stimulation of language and learning by the 24-month assessment point (see Box V.2 and Table V.2). Parents participating in Early Head Start were more likely than control group parents to structure the home environment to encourage cognitive and language development. They were more likely to have a variety of developmentally stimulating toys and materials in the home for the child to use (measured by the support of cognitive, language, and literacy environment of the HOME scale). They were more likely to structure the child's day by setting a regular bedtime for the child. However, there was no difference between Early Head Start and control-group parents in establishing regular bedtime routines such as reading stories, kissing good-night, or other activities that parents and children would do regularly at bedtime.
Early Head Start parents also reported that they more frequently engaged in activities with the child that stimulate cognitive and language development. Parents participating in Early Head Start had higher average scores on a composite scale measuring the frequency of several parent-child activities, including singing nursery rhymes or songs, dancing, telling stories, or reading stories. In addition, because of the special emphasis placed by early childhood educators and pediatricians on reading to children, we looked specifically at parents' reports of the frequency of reading to their children. Early Head Start parents reported that they read stories to their children more frequently than did parents in the control group. A larger proportion of Early Head Start parents than control-group parents reported that they read to the child every day. In addition, a larger proportion of Early Head Start parents than control-group parents volunteered in response to an open-ended question that reading stories to the child was part of their regular bedtime routine.
Verbal and social skills may be important for parents to model for children. Early Head Start parents were rated by the interviewers as having verbal-social skills during the parent interview that were similar to those of control group parents at the 24-month assessment point.
| BOX V.2 MEASURES OF PARENT STIMULATION OF LANGUAGE AND LEARNING Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) - measures the quality of stimulation and support available to a child in the home environment (Bradley and Caldwell 1984). Information needed to score the inventory is obtained through a combination of interview and observation conducted in the home with the child's parent while the child is present. We used the Infant version of the HOME inventory at the 24-month assessment. The HOME Infant version includes 45 items. We derived four subscales from this assessment, with two related to parent stimulation of language and learning, as well as the Total Score: Total Score - measures the cognitive stimulation and emotional support provided by the parent in the home environment. The total includes all 31 items used in the four subscales. The maximum potential score is 31. Support of Cognitive, Language and Literacy Environment - measures the provision of a variety of developmentally stimulating toys and furnishings, as well as whether the parent provides toys for the child during the visit, reads to the child several times per week, and talks to the child while doing household chores. Items are obtained by a combination of parent report and interviewer observation. The maximum potential score is 12, for homes in which all types of toys and furnishings are present and the parent provides toys for the child during the visit and reports reading and talking to the child during play. Maternal Verbal-Social Skills - measures the parent's ability to speak freely and clearly to the interviewer. Items in this subscale are based entirely on interviewer observations of the parent during the interview. The maximum potential score is 3. Regular Bedtime - measures whether the parent has a regular bedtime for the child. The parent must name the time and report that the child went to bed at that time at least four of the past five weekdays. Regular Bedtime Routines - measures whether the parent reports having a regular set of routines with the child around bedtime, such as singing lullabies, putting toys away, or telling stories. Parent-Child Activities - measures the frequency with which the parent engages in several activities with the child that can stimulate cognitive and language development, including reading or telling stories, dancing, singing, and playing outside together. Read Every Day - measures whether the parent reported that she reads to the child "every day" or "more than once a day." Read at Bedtime - measures whether the parent reported that the child has a regular bedtime routine and, in response to an open-ended question about activities that are part of that routine, the parent reported that reading is one of the routine activities. |
| Outcome | Program Group Participants g | Control Grouph | Estimated Impact Per Participanti | Effect Sizej |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) - Total Score | 26.5 | 26.1 | .4** | 9.8 |
| STRUCTURING THE ENVIRONMENT | ||||
| HOME: Support of Cognitive, Language, and Literacy Environment | 10.3 | 10.1 | .2*** | 11.5 |
| Percentage of Parents Who Set a Regular Bedtime for Child | 61.6 | 55.8 | 5.9** | 11.8 |
| Percentage of Parents and Children Who Have Regular Bedtime Routines | 69.0 | 66.7 | 2.2 | 4.7 |
| PARENT-CHILD ACTIVITIES | ||||
| Parent-Child Activities | 4.6 | 4.5 | 0.1** | 11.7 |
| Percentage of Parents Who Read to Child Every Day | 57.9 | 52.3 | 5.6** | 11.3 |
| Percentage of Parents Who Read to Child at Bedtime | 29.4 | 22.6 | 6.8*** | 16.0 |
| PARENT'S VERBAL-SOCIAL SKILLS | ||||
| HOME: Maternal Verbal-Social Skillsk | 2.8 | 2.7 | .1 | 6.8 |
| Sample Size | ||||
| Parent Interview | 1,092 | 1,021 | 2,113 | |
| Parent-Child Interactions | 913 | 819 | 1,732 | |
| SOURCE: Parent
interviews, interviewer observations, and assessments of semi-structured
parent-child interactions conducted when children were approximately
24 months old. NOTE: All impact estimates were calculated using regression models, where each site was weighted equally. gA participant is defined as a program group member who received more than one Early Head Start home visit, met with an Early Head Start case manager more than once, received at least two weeks of Early Head Start center-based care, and/or participated in Early Head Start group parent-child activities.(back) hThe control group mean is the mean for the control group members who would have participated in Early Head Start if they had instead been assigned to the program group. This unobserved mean was estimated as the difference between the program group mean for participants and the impact per participant.(back) iThe estimated impact per participant is measured as the estimated impact per eligible applicant divided by the proportion of program group members who participated in Early Head Start services (which varied by site). The estimated impact per eligible applicant is measured as the difference between the regression-adjusted means for all program and control group members.(back) jThe effect size was calculated by dividing the estimated impact per participant by the standard deviation of the outcome measure for the control group times 100 (that is, it is the impact expressed as a percentage of the standard deviation).(back) kBehaviors are observed during the HOME assessment and rated on a yes/no scale by the Interviewer/Assessor.(back) *Significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test **Significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
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c. Parent Insensitivity, Hostility, and Punitiveness
In addition to increasing the levels of positive parenting behavior, Early Head Start also moderately reduced the average levels of some negative parenting behaviors, including detachment during a structured play situation and reported levels of spanking (see Box V.3). This was true even though, in the absence of the Early Head Start intervention, average levels of negative parenting behavior during the parent-child structured play situation were relatively low (average scores in the control group for detachment, intrusiveness, and negative regard were 1.5, 1.5, and 1.9, respectively, out of a possible maximum of 7) (see Table V.3). Similarly, overall levels of punitive interactions observed during the interview (shouting at or slapping the child; expressing hostility or annoyance toward the child) were extremely low (this scale is scored for the absence of punitive interactions so the complete absence of punitive interactions would receive the maximum score of 5). At the same time, reported levels of spanking were high, as nearly half the parents reported that they spanked their 2-year-old child in the previous week.
We examined two types of insensitive parenting behavior, detachment and intrusiveness, both of which were measured during a structured, parent-child free play situation. Early Head Start parents showed lower levels of detachment, but there was no impact of Early Head Start on intrusiveness. Thus, Early Head Start parents were less likely than control-group parents to be inattentive or nonresponsive to the child during play, and less likely to interact with the child in an indifferent manner during play. However, Early Head Start and control-group parents were equally likely to be intrusive during the play situation, for example, by overwhelming the child with the pace of play, not allowing the child to handle toys he or she reaches for, or persisting in play that does not interest the child.
Average levels of hostility and punitive behavior were generally not changed by participation in Early Head Start, but reported levels of spanking were lower. Early Head Start had no impact on average levels of negative regard (expressions of anger toward child or rejection of child) exhibited by parents during parent-child structured play at 24 months of age. Similarly, Early Head Start had no impact on levels of punitive interactions (for example, shouting at the child, slapping or spanking the child, or scolding the child) observed by the interviewer during the in-home parent interview and assessment. However, while about half the parents reported that they spanked their toddler in the previous week, the proportion of Early Head Start parents who reported this action was lower by 5 percentage points. Programs may have emphasized that parents should avoid physical punishment, a practice that appears to be fairly common among families in the research sample. Because this is a measure based on parent report, the impact may represent a combination of success in changing behavior and a change in what parents are willing to report about their behavior.
| BOX V.3 MEASURES OF NEGATIVE PARENTING BEHAVIOR Parent Behavior during Parent-Child Structured Play - measures the parent's behavior with the child during a structured play task. The parent and child were given three bags of interesting toys and asked to play with the toys in sequence. The structured play task was videotaped, and child and parent behaviors were coded by child development researchers according to strict protocols (see Appendix C). This assessment was originally used in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care (NICHD Early Child Care Research Network 1999). Four aspects of the parent's behavior with the child were rated on a seven-point scale, with three related to negative parenting behavior: Detachment - measures the extent to which the parent is inattentive to the child, inconsistently attentive, or interacts with the child in an indifferent manner. Higher scores on detachment indicate that the parent showed flat affect, rarely made eye contact with or talked to the child, did not respond to the child's vocalizations or bids for attention, and did not try to engage the child with the new toys. Intrusiveness - measures the extent to which the parent exerts control over the child. Higher scores on intrusiveness indicate that the parent controlled the play agenda, not allowing the child to influence the focus or pace of play, grabbing toys away from the child, not taking turns in play with the child, and persisting with or even escalating an action that the child clearly wishes would stop. Negative Regard - measures the parent's expression of discontent with, anger toward, disapproval of, or rejection of the child. High scores on negative regard indicate that the parent used a disapproving or negative tone, showed frustration, anger, physical roughness, or harshness toward the child, threatened the child for failing at a task or not playing the way the parent desired, or belittled the child. Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) - measures the quality of stimulation and support available to a child in the home environment (Bradley and Caldwell 1984). Information needed to score the inventory is obtained through a combination of interview and observation conducted in the home with the child's parent while the child is present. We used the Infant version of the HOME inventory at the 24-month assessment. The HOME Infant version includes 45 items. We derived four subscales from this assessment, with one related to negative parenting: Absence of Punitive Interactions - measures harsh or punitive parenting behavior observed during the home interview. Items in this subscale are based entirely on interviewer observations of the parent and child during the interview, and include such items as shouting at the child, expressing annoyance or hostility toward the child, hitting, scolding, or restricting the child. Items are scored 1 if the parent did not engage in particular harsh or punitive behaviors during the 2-hour home visit, so in contrast to the other measures of negative parenting behavior, higher scores on this outcome measure imply less negative parenting behavior. Spanked Child in Previous Week - measures parent's report that she used physical punishment in the previous week by spanking the child. |
| Outcome | Program Group Participantsl | Control Groupm | Estimated Impact Per Participantn | Effect Sizeo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INSENSITIVITY | ||||
| Parent-Child Structured Play: Detachmentp | 1.4 | 1.5 | -.1* | -10.4 |
| Parent-Child Structured Play: Intrusivenessp | 1.9 | 1.9 | 0 | -3.0 |
| HOSTILITY AND PUNISHMENT | ||||
| Parent-Child Structured Play: Negative Regardp | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0 | 3.9 |
| Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME): Absence of Punitive Interactionsq | 4.4 | 4.4 | -.1 | -4.6 |
| Percentage of Parents who Spanked the Child in the Previous Week | 47.4 | 52.1 | -4.7* | -9.4 |
| Sample Size | ||||
| Parent Interview | 1,092 | 1,021 | 2,113 | |
| Parent-Child Interactions | 913 | 819 | 1,732 | |
| SOURCE: Parent
interviews, interviewer observations, and assessments of semi-structured
parent-child interactions conducted when children were approximately
24 months old. NOTE: All impact estimates were calculated using regression models, where each site was weighted equally. lTA participant is defined as a program group member who received more than one Early Head Start home visit, met with an Early Head Start case manager more than once, received at least two weeks of Early Head Start center-based care, and/or participated in Early Head Start group parent-child activities.(back) mThe control group mean is the mean for the control group members who would have participated in Early Head Start if they had instead been assigned to the program group. This unobserved mean was estimated as the difference between the program group mean for participants and the impact per participant. (back) nThe estimated impact per participant is measured as the estimated impact per eligible applicant divided by the proportion of program group members who participated in Early Head Start services (which varied by site). The estimated impact per eligible applicant is measured as the difference between the regression-adjusted means for all program and control group members.(back) oThe effect size was calculated by dividing the estimated impact per participant by the standard deviation of the outcome measure for the control group times 100 (that is, it is the impact expressed as a percentage of the standard deviation).(back) pBehaviors are observed during the videotaped parent-child structured play task and coded on a seven-point scale.(back) qBehaviors are observed during the HOME assessment and rated on a yes/no scale by the Interviewer/Assessor.(back) *Significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test **Significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
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2. Parenting Knowledge
One of the areas in which Early Head Start programs are expected to have an impact is on parenting knowledge, since all of the programs try to impart such information to parents through a variety of strategies. We expect that the parenting information focuses on at least three areas: (1) infant-toddler development and developmental milestones, (2) strategies for resolving common parent-child conflict situations, and (3) safety in the home. We assessed parent knowledge and home safety practices at the birthday-related interviews ( see Box V.4).
Early Head Start had a modest positive impact on parents' knowledge of infant-toddler development and developmental milestones at the 24-month assessment point (see Table V.4). Early Head Start parents were more likely than control-group parents to know the typical behavior, language, and cognitive abilities of 2-year-old children.
In addition, research at the New York program site explored adolescent mothers' knowledge in some depth. The researchers show that there is considerable complexity in the nature and timing of these mothers' knowledge of infant/toddler development (Box V.5).
In the national study, Early Head Start parents were significantly more likely than control group parents to suggest positive and milder discipline strategies to respond to common parent-child conflict situations, such as the child having a temper tantrum in a public place. Early Head Start programs appeared not to have an impact overall in reducing the incidence of parents suggesting the use of such negative discipline strategies as shouting at the child, threatening the child, or using physical punishment (when presented with hypothetical situations). A larger proportion of Early Head Start parents than control parents at the 24-month assessment point suggested taking steps to prevent the conflict situation from arising or else distracting the child once the situation occurs. When children were 24 months old, a larger proportion of Early Head Start parents than control parents suggested talking to the child or explaining the reason for complying with the parent. A larger proportion of Early Head Start parents than control parents suggested only mild strategies for addressing the parent-child conflict situations.
We found little evidence that the Early Head Start programs significantly influenced families' child safety practices, including preparedness in a poison emergency, covers or gates for stairs, windows, and electrical outlets, working smoke alarms, and the appropriate use of car seats (Table V.5). The Early Head Start programs had no significant impacts on safety practices that parents reported when children were 24 months of age. Moreover, the interviewer ratings of the safety of the child's play area were the same on average for both Early Head Start and control group families.
Although the national evaluation did not measure the more global construct of "parenting role competence," one of the local research teams examined the relationship between program participation and this general child-rearing ability. The findings are described in Box V.6.
| BOX V.4 MEASURES OF PARENTING KNOWLEDGE Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory (KIDI) - measures the parent's knowledge of childrearing practices, developmental processes, and infant developmental norms and milestones (Benasich et al. 1997; Benasich and Brooks-Gunn 1996; MacPhee 1983). Each of the items is a statement, such as, "Most two-year-olds can tell the difference between a make-believe story on TV and a true one," and the parent is asked to respond whether she strongly agrees; agrees; disagrees; or strongly disagrees. A subset of eight items was used for the Early Head Start evaluation, selected from the 17 items used in the Infant Health and Development Program evaluation (Benasich et al. 1997). Items are coded on a 4-point scale indicating the average level of accuracy of responses to each statement. Discipline Strategies - measures the parent's strategies for handling three different potential conflict situations with the child: (1) the child keeps playing with breakable things; (2) the child refuses to eat; and (3) the child throws a temper tantrum in a public place. Parents provided open-ended answers to how they would respond to each of the three situations, and these responses were classified into the types of discipline strategies, which were coded as binary variables. A parent received a "1" for each strategy that was ever mentioned. In addition, we created the following composite measures: Mild Discipline - binary variable indicates parents who mentioned only the following types of responses for each situation: prevent the situation; distract the child; talk to the child or explain the issue; ignore the behavior; or remove the child or object. Index of Severity of Discipline Strategies - measures the degree of harshness of discipline strategies suggested. An individual's score on this index ranges from 1 to 5, and is determined by the harshest strategy that was suggested in response to any of the three conflict situations. Thus, parents who said they would use physical punishment receive a 5; those who did not suggest physical punishment but did say they would shout at the child receive a 4; those whose harshest response was to threaten the child receive a 3; time-out, restricting the child, or bribing receive a 2; and only mild strategies (as listed above) receive a 1. Safety Practices - measures whether the parent is using standard safety practices to prevent accidents or to be prepared for common emergencies with infants and toddlers. Practices include keeping syrup of ipecac in the home in case of poison emergencies, having gates or doors in front of stairs, riding in a car seat in the car, and having covers on electrical outlets. |
| Outcome | Program Group Participantsr | Control Groups |
Estimated Impact Per Participantt | Effect Sizeu |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KNOWLEDGE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT | ||||
| Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory (KIDI) | 3.4 | 3.3 | 0.1*** | 12.3 |
| DISCIPLINE STRATEGIES | ||||
| Percentage of Parents Who Suggested Responses to Hypothetical Situations with Child: | ||||
| Prevent or Distract | 72.9 | 66.8 | 6.1*** | 12.9 |
| Remove Child or Object | 80.4 | 81.5 | -1.1 | -2.9 |
| Talk and Explain | 37.2 | 31.1 | 6.1** | 12.9 |
| Threaten or Command | 31.6 | 34.3 | -2.7 | -5.6 |
| Shout | 5.3 | 4.6 | 0.7 | 3.5 |
| Physical Punishment | 27.7 | 29.7 | -2.0 | -4.3 |
| Percentage of Parents Suggesting Only Mild Responses to the Hypothetical Situationsv | 43.1 | 39.1 | 4.0* | 8.2 |
| Index of Severity of Discipline Strategies Suggestedw | 2.7 | 2.8 | -0.1 | -6.2 |
| Sample Size | 1,092 | 1,021 | 2,113 | |
| SOURCE: Parent interviews
conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. NOTE: All impact estimates were calculated using regression models, where each site was weighted equally. rA participant is defined as a program group member who received more than one Early Head Start home visit, met with an Early Head Start case manager more than once, received at least two weeks of Early Head Start center-based care, and/or participated in Early Head Start group parent-child activities.(back) sThe control group mean is the mean for the control group members who would have participated in Early Head Start if they had instead been assigned to the program group. This unobserved mean was estimated as the difference between the program group mean for participants and the impact per participant.(back) tThe estimated impact per participant is measured as the estimated impact per eligible applicant divided by the proportion of program group members who participated in Early Head Start services (which varied by site). The estimated impact per eligible applicant is measured as the difference between the regression-adjusted means for all program and control group members.(back) uThe effect size was calculated by dividing the estimated impact per participant by the standard deviation of the outcome measure for the control group times 100 (that is, it is the impact expressed as a percentage of the standard deviation).(back) vParents were classified as suggesting only mild discipline if their responses to the three discipline situations include only the following: prevent or distract, remove child or object, or talk and explain.(back) wThe Index of Severity of Discipline Strategies is based on a hierarchy of discipline practices from talk and explain or prevent/distract (1) through physical punishment (5). The most severe approach suggested is used to code this scale.(back) *Significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test **Significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
||||
| BOX V.5 LOW-INCOME ADOLESCENT MOTHERS' KNOWLEDGE ABOUT
Catherine S. Tamis-LeMonda, Jacqueline Shannon,
and Mark Spellmann Adolescent mothers have been shown to know less about children's development than older mothers, even when controlling for differences in socioeconomic factors. Although studies indicate that adolescent mothers may lack knowledge about child development, specific details about this lack of knowledge remain unclear. In the present investigation, we sought to characterize the nature of adolescent mothers' knowledge about child development in our Early Head Start site. We distinguished between two aspects of mothers' knowledge-knowledge about the relative ordering of developmental milestones versus knowledge about the developmental timing of milestones-as well as among five domains of child development: cognition, language, motor, play, and social development. To this end, 59 first-time adolescent mothers of 32 boys and 17 girls, who represented a first wave of participants in our Early Head Start research evaluation study, participated in this study (age M = 16.62, SD = 1.15). Ten mothers were pregnant, 33 had children between 1 and 12 months of age, and 16 had children between 13 and 28 months of age. Participants were from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Demographic characteristics did not relate to maternal knowledge. Mothers were asked to complete an age-based checklist of children's abilities in five developmental domains: cognition, language, motor skill, social development, and play. They were asked to estimate the ages (in months) at which the average child is first capable of performing each action within each of the five domains. Items on each of the five lists were primarily obtained from the Hawaii Early Learning Profile Checklist and the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Findings indicated that, as a group, mothers were highly accurate in their ordering of developmental abilities, although mothers' knowledge about the ordering of play and social abilities was significantly weaker than that of cognitive, language, and motor milestones. To assess mothers' knowledge about the timing of abilities-that is, the ages at which children first exhibit each behavior-we calculated the percentages of mothers' estimates that were (1) within the age window, (2) underestimates (meaning they expected children to achieve milestones at ages earlier than norms), and (3) overestimates (meaning they expected children to achieve milestones at ages later than norms). Mothers' age estimates fell within the developmental window between 24 and 35 percent of the time. Across domains, mothers were more likely to under- than to overestimate onsets of abilities and were more accurate at estimating age onsets for earlier milestones than for those occurring after 12 months of age. In summary, the adolescent mothers attending our Early Head Start program were generally knowledgeable about the ordering of developmental abilities but less aware of the timing of abilities. Mothers were better at estimating first-year abilities and cognitive, language, and motor development than they were at estimating play and social development. Adolescent mothers systematically underestimated the timing of later emerging abilities across all domains, expecting children to achieve most abilities within a short span of a few months, rather than appreciating the protracted course of children's developmental achievements. These findings have implications for Early Head Start interventions with mothers. Lack of knowledge about development can lead to unrealistic expectations of children, diminished efficacy in mothers, disappointment in children's abilities, or inappropriate parenting. Teaching adolescent parents about normative achievements across domains of development is important preparation for the task of parenting. |
| Outcome | Program Group Participantsx | Control Groupy |
Estimated Impact Per Participantz | Effect Sizeaa |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family Has Syrup of Ipecac in the House in Case of a Poison Emergency | 29.9 | 29.9 | 0 | 0 |
| Parent/Guardian Has or Knows How to Find the Telephone Number For the Poison Control Center | 37.9 | 36.1 | 1.8 | 3.7 |
| Family Uses a Gate or Door at the Top of Stairs | 79.6 | 81.2 | -1.6 | -4.1 |
| Family Uses Guards or Gates For Windows | 62.7 | 65.0 | -2.3 | -4.7 |
| Family Has Covers on Electrical Outlets That Child Can Reach | 60.2 | 61.1 | -0.9 | -1.9 |
| Family's Homes Has Working Smoke Alarms | 87.2 | 84.9 | 2.4 | 6.5 |
| Family Uses a Car Seat For Child and it is in the Back Seat of the Car | 80.7 | 82.1 | -1.4 | -3.6 |
| Interviewer Observed That Child's Play Area is Safe | 68.7 | 68.7 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Sample Size | 1,092 | 1,021 | 2,113 | |
| SOURCE: Parent
interviews and interviewer observations conducted when children were
approximately 24 months old. NOTE: All impact estimates were calculated using regression models, where each site was weighted equally. xA participant is defined as a program group member who received more than one Early Head Start home visit, met with an Early Head Start case manager more than once, received at least two weeks of Early Head Start center-based care, and/or participated in Early Head Start group parent-child activities.(back) yThe control group mean is the mean for the control group members who would have participated in Early Head Start if they had instead been assigned to the program group. This unobserved mean was estimated as the difference between the program group mean for participants and the impact per participant.(back) zThe estimated impact per participant is measured as the estimated impact per eligible applicant divided by the proportion of program group members who participated in Early Head Start services (which varied by site). The estimated impact per eligible applicant is measured as the difference between the regression-adjusted means for all program and control group members.(back) aaThe effect size was calculated by dividing the estimated impact per participant by the standard deviation of the outcome measure for the control group times 100 (that is, it is the impact expressed as a percentage of the standard deviation).(back) *Significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test **Significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
||||
| BOX V.6 EARLY HEAD START PARTICIPATION AND MOTHERS'
PERCEPTIONS Michaela Farber, Shavaun Wall, and Harriet Liebow
The United Cerebral Palsy Early Head Start site is located in a suburban Northern Virginia strip mall. To enhance child development in families struggling with poverty, Early Head Start provides individualized child care, parent role, and family development services in a comprehensive framework congruent with the resources and values of the local community. In collaboration with this program, researchers at the The Catholic University of America investigated mothers' perceptions of parenting role competence as a way to understand the relationship between Early Head Start participation and parent role development when their child is 24 months old. A mother's perception of her competence as a parent is tied to her ability to rear a child. Specifically, the project hypothesized (1) that mothers' perceptions of their parenting role competence at 24 months may differ significantly between families enrolled in Early Head Start and those in the control group; and (2) that this difference may be influenced by mothers' birth status (being U.S.-born or immigrant), age, education, English-speaking adequacy, employment, resilience, family income, and adequacy of family resources. Mothers' perception of parenting role competence at 24 months was measured by a single 5-point-scaled question about what kind of a parent she thought she was. Of the 149 families who applied for services, 75 were randomly assigned to the Early Head Start program and 74 to the control group. Of this total, 52 Early Head Start and 52 control group families had children 24 months old and were included in this study. The program and control group families shared similar demographics, except that the program group contained slightly more immigrant families. In comparing mothers' parenting role competence when their child turned 24 months, chi square analysis revealed that Early Head Start mothers modestly but significantly differed from control group mothers (104; X2 8.0, df 3, p .05, Phi .28). Specifically, 87 percent of Early Head Start mothers perceived their role competence as that of a better-than-average parent; 13 percent, as that of an average parent. In contrast, 63 percent of control group mothers perceived their role competence as that of a better than average parent; 37 percent as that of an average to below-average parent. Bivariate correlational analyses were conducted to prepare for exploring the interactive effects of the baseline variables mentioned above and the targeted main effect of Early Head Start participation on mothers' perceived parenting role competence These analyses yielded two significant, albeit weak, relationships between mothers' parenting role competence and mothers' baseline birth status (r = .18, p = .07) and employment (r = .19, p = .05). Inclusion of these two correlates with Early Head Start participation in stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that Early Head Start participation is the most important contributor (Beta = -.27, t = -2.8, p = .006) to the prediction of mothers' 24-month parenting role competence (N = 104, F = 7.86, df = 103, p = .006), and accounts for 7 percent of the variance (R2=.07). In conclusion, this investigation demonstrated that mothers' participation in Early Head Start was mildly positively associated with mothers' perceptions of parenting role competence. |
D. VARIATIONS IN IMPACTS ON PARENTING BY PROGRAM APPROACH2
The Early Head Start programs adopted different approaches to providing child development services. At the time of our 1997 implementation visits to the 17 research programs, we found that four programs offered only center-based services to families; seven programs offered only home-based services; and six programs offered services of both types, which provided some flexibility in determining services that families would receive to best meet their needs. With some exceptions, which we note in the following discussion, Early Head Start programs' impacts on parenting behavior and knowledge were concentrated in the home-based and mixed-approach programs.
1. Parenting Behavior and the Home Environment
Home-based and mixed Early Head Start programs had positive, statistically significant impacts on emotional support for the child at 24 months of age. Parents in home-based Early Head Start programs showed greater emotional responsivity as observed by the interviewer during the in-home interview, and greater supportiveness during parent-child structured play, than parents in the control group (see Figure V.1). Parents in mixed-approach Early Head Start programs also were more supportive of their toddler during parent-child structured play than parents in the control group, but there was no difference between mixed-approach Early Head Start and control group parents in emotional responsivity observed during the interview. The center-based Early Head Start programs had no impacts on parents' supportiveness or emotional responsivity at 24 months of age.
Mixed-approach and home-based Early Head Start programs had positive impacts on several aspects of parents' stimulation of language and learning when children were 24 months old (see Figure V.2). Parents in mixed-approach programs showed greater support for the cognitive, language, and literacy environment of the home and had higher total scores on the HOME scale. Parents in mixed-approach Early Head Start programs more frequently engaged in developmentally stimulating parent-child activities at 24 months of age and were more likely to read to the child every day. Parents in home-based Early Head Start programs showed greater support for the cognitive, language, and literacy environment of the home at 24 months of age and had higher total scores on the HOME scale than did parents in the control group. Parents in home-based Early Head Start programs were also more likely to read to the child at bedtime than were parents in the control group, but there were no differences in the proportion reading every day or in scores on the frequency of parent-child activities. Center-based Early Head Start programs had few impacts on parent stimulation of language and learning, but parents in center-based programs were more likely than control-group parents to read to the child at bedtime.
Early Head Start had few impacts on negative parenting behavior by program approach (see Figure V.3). Parents in mixed-approach and home-based Early Head Start programs were less detached or unresponsive to the toddler during the parent-child structured play assessment than were parents in the control group. There were no other impacts on negative behavior during structured play or as observed by the interviewer for any of the program-approach subgroups.
FIGURE V.1
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON EMOTIONAL SUPPORT OF THE
CHILD, BY PROGRAM APPROACH
[D]| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
FIGURE V.2
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON PARENT STIMULATION OF
LANGUAGE AND LEARNING, BY PROGRAM APPROACH
[D]| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
FIGURE V.3
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON NEGATIVE PARENTING BEHAVIOR,
BY PROGRAM APPROACH
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
2. Parenting Knowledge
Early Head Start parents in home-based programs and mixed-approach programs scored higher than control-group parents on the Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory at 24 months (see Figure V.4). Early Head Start had no impact on the scores on this brief child development knowledge assessment for parents in center-based programs.
Parents in center-based and mixed-approach Early Head Start programs were more likely than control-group parents to suggest positive discipline strategies and less likely to suggest harsh or punitive approaches to address common parent-child conflict situations, such as the child having a temper tantrum in a public place (see Figure V.4). Early Head Start parents in center-based programs were more likely than control-group parents to suggest preventing the incident or distracting the child; and they were less likely to suggest using threats or commands to address the situation. Parents in mixed-approach programs were more likely than control-group parents to suggest talking to the child and explaining the issue at the 24-month followup (not shown) and they were less likely to suggest using physical discipline. Parents in home-based programs were more likely to suggest talking to the child or explaining the issue than were control-group parents, but there were no differences between these groups in the use of harsh or punitive approaches.
FIGURE V.4
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON KNOWLEDGE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT
AND
DISCIPLINE STRATEGIES, BY PROGRAM APPROACH
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
E. VARIATIONS IN IMPACTS ON PARENTING BY PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
As part of the implementation study, Early Head Start programs were rated on their overall implementation of the major program elements in both fall 1997 and fall 1999. Six programs were rated as fully implemented in fall 1997 (early implementers), six programs were not rated as fully implemented in fall 1997 but were rated as fully implemented overall in fall 1999 (later implementers), and five programs were not rated as fully implemented at either time (incomplete implementers). These latter programs either emphasized family support or faced difficult implementation challenges, such as early staff turnover in leadership positions or partnerships that did not work out well.
In this section, we discuss how Early Head Start impacts on parenting behavior and parenting knowledge varied by the level and timing of implementation. To preview the findings, implementation appears to be related to the pattern of impacts on parenting outcomes. Programs that were implemented early and sustained their implementation over time had a pattern of positive impacts on many aspects of parenting, while programs that were implemented in only one period or were incomplete implementers had few impacts on parenting outcomes.
1. Parenting Behavior and the Home Environment
Early Head Start programs that were implemented early had positive impacts on parents' supportiveness in the parent-child structured play assessment at the 24-month followup, but not on the interviewer's rating of emotional responsivity observed during the Parent Interview (see Figure V.5). Early Head Start programs that were implemented later also had a positive impact on supportiveness in the parent-child structured play assessment, but also no impact on emotional responsivity. Early Head Start programs that were incomplete implementers had no impacts on either measure of emotional support for the child.
Early Head Start programs that were implemented early had positive impacts on several important aspects of parental stimulation of language and learning at 24 months of age (see Figure V.6). Parents in Early Head Start programs that were implemented early had higher total scores on the HOME scale and on their support for the cognitive, language, and literacy environment of the home. Parents in early-implemented programs had higher scores on the composite scale measuring the frequency of developmentally stimulating parent-child activities. Parents in Early Head Start programs that were implemented early were more likely to read to the toddler every day and to read stories as part of the child's bedtime routine. Early Head Start programs that were implemented later had no impacts on measures of the parent's stimulation of language and learning. Early Head Start programs that were incomplete implementers had a positive impact on the proportion of parents who read to the toddler as part of the child's bedtime routine, but no impacts on other aspects of the parent's stimulation of language and learning.
Early Head Start had few impacts on negative parenting behavior at the 24-month assessment by the timing and level of implementation (see Figure V.7). Parents in Early Head Start programs that were implemented early or implemented later were less detached or unresponsive to the toddler during the parent-child structured play assessment than were parents in the control group. There were no other impacts on negative behavior during structured play or as observed by the i nterviewer for any of the program implementation subgroups.
FIGURE V.5
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON EMOTIONAL SUPPORT OF THE
CHILD, BY PATTERN OF IMPLEMENTATION
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. **Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
FIGURE V.6
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON PARENT STIMULATION OF
LANGUAGE AND LEARNING, BY PATTERN OF IMPLEMENTATION
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
FIGURE V.7
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON NEGATIVE PARENTING BEHAVIOR,
BY PATTERN OF IMPLEMENTATION
[D]| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
2. Parenting Knowledge
Early Head Start programs that were later implementers had a statistically significant, positive impact on parents' knowledge of infant-toddler development at 24 months of age (see Figure V.8). Early Head Start programs that were implemented early and those that were incomplete implementers had no impact on parents' scores on this short assessment of child development knowledge at 24 months.
Early Head Start programs that were implemented early had positive impacts on the types of discipline strategies that parents proposed in response to the hypothetical parent-toddler conflict situations (see Figure V.8). Early Head Start parents in programs that were implemented early were more likely than parents in the control group to propose positive discipline strategies, such as preventing the situation, distracting the child, or talking to the child and explaining the issue. Early Head Start parents in these programs were less likely than parents in the control group to propose harsh or punitive responses, such as threats, commands, or physical punishment. Early Head Start programs that were later implementers had few impacts on parents' suggested discipline strategies. Parents in later-implemented programs were more likely than parents in the control group to suggest talking to the child or explaining the issue, but there was no difference between these groups in the proportion suggesting harsh or punitive strategies. Early Head Start programs that were incomplete implementers had no impacts on parents' discipline strategies at the 24-month assessment point.
FIGURE V.8
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON KNOWLEDGE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT
AND
DISCIPLINE STRATEGIES, BY PATTERN OF IMPLEMENTATION
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
F. VARIATIONS IN PARENTING OUTCOMES BY WELFARE-RELATED WORK REQUIREMENTS
Characteristics of the communities in which the Early Head Start programs operate may make it more challenging for programs to serve families or may influence the level and types of services families in the control group receive. In about 40 percent of the communities with an Early Head Start research program, parents receiving welfare were required to work when their children were under 12 month of age (although most of these communities exempted parents from work if the child was under 3 months old). Early Head Start programs in these communities may face the challenge of helping parents navigate welfare-related work requirements and find good-quality child care, tasks which may take time away from parenting education and supporting parents' efforts to build relationships with their children.
The pattern of Early Head Start impacts on parenting behavior and knowledge in sites with and without welfare-related work requirements for parents of infants is mixed. In general, programs in locations without work requirements had most of their impacts in the area of stimulation of language and learning. In sites where work was required while children were still under 12 months of age, impacts tended to be concentrated in knowledge of child development and discipline. The specific patterns are shown in Figures V.9 through V.12. As we discussed in the previous chapter, programs chose to provide an array of services designed to meet the needs of families in their particular community context. In the two subgroups of sites defined by the welfare-related work requirements, Early Head Start programs had important impacts on parenting, although on different aspects of parenting.
Early Head Start programs in sites with work requirements had a positive impact on the parents' supportiveness in the parent-child structured play situation, but not on emotional responsivity as rated by the interviewer based on the parent's behavior during the HOME interview (see Figure V.9). For Early Head Start programs in sites without a work requirement for parents of infants, the reverse was true.
Early Head Start programs in sites with a work requirement for parents of infants had positive impacts on reading to the child (see Figure V.10), but not on other measures of parent stimulation of language and learning. Early Head Start programs in sites without a work requirement had a positive impact on reading to the child but also on the other key measures of parent stimulation of language and learning. Early Head Start had no impacts on negative parenting behavior in either subgroup defined by welfare-related work requirements (see Figure V.11). Finally, Early Head Start programs in sites with a work requirement for parents of infants had a positive impact on parents' discipline strategies (see Figure V.12) but not on their knowledge of child development. The reverse was true for Early Head Start programs in sites without a work requirement for parents of infants.
FIGURE V.9
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON EMOTIONAL SUPPORT OF THE
CHILD, BY WELFARE-RELATED WORK REQUIREMENTS
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each site equally. * Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .10 level, two-tailed test. ** Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .05 level, two-tailed test. ***Program impact is significantly different from zero at the .01 level, two-tailed test. |
FIGURE V.10
IMPACTS PER PARTICIPANT ON PARENT STIMULATION OF LANGUAGE
AND LEARNING, BY WELFARE-RELATED
WORK REQUIREMENTS
[D]
| Source: Parent interviews, interviewers observations,
and assessments of parent-child interactions during semi-structured
tasks conducted when children were approximately 24 months old. Notes: All percentages are regression-adjusted means estimated using models that weight each sit |