Introduction
Research Questions
- What are the primary reasons families search for CCEE?
- How do families learn about and search for CCEE options?
- When do parents search for CCEE, and how long does it take to find a provider?
- What are parents’ perceptions of different CCEE types?
- What is most important to them when looking for and considering their options?
- Why do they select the programs and providers they do, and what barriers do they face in searching for and selecting CCEE?
- How can research from other fields inform the study of CCEE search and selection?
Families commonly make decisions about child care and early education (CCEE). CCEE supports children’s learning and parents’ work and education. Families may use CCEE in a child care center, home, or school setting. They may use a licensed program or relatives, friends, or neighbors to provide care.
To support families who are looking for CCEE, the federal government provides funding to states, territories, and Tribes through the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) to design and implement consumer education activities. These activities are designed to help parents more easily access information about CCEE and available providers in their area, so they can make more informed decisions.
In response to policy actions, researchers have examined questions related to how parents search for and select CCEE. This literature review report summarizes findings across recent publications. It identifies key findings across research studies as well as limitations that could be addressed by future research.
Purpose
This literature review report was developed as part of the Consumer Education and Parental Choice in Early Care and Education project. The report summarizes research published from 2012 to 2021 on how parents look for and select CCEE. The report identifies key findings and areas for future research.
Key Findings and Highlights
- Parents often rely on their relatives, friends, close personal contacts, and other trusted sources for information on CCEE options.
- Parents also frequently search the internet to find information about CCEE.
- They less often report using formal sources, including child care resource and referral (CCR&R) agencies.
- Parents consider multiple factors when searching for and selecting CCEE.
- Safety and quality are among top priorities, but they also weigh practical considerations, such as location and hours.
- Cost is often a limiting or deciding factor—meaning some parents limit the options they consider to ones they can afford, or they ultimately select CCEE based on cost or whether they think the cost is worth it.
- Factors, such as family circumstances and beliefs, personal and community characteristics, and local CCEE supply, relate to whether parents use any form of CCEE or different types of CCEE.
- Parents believe different CCEE types have different advantages and disadvantages, and those beliefs may influence the options they consider.
- Some parents do not trust unfamiliar caregivers and prefer using caregivers they personally know.
- Some parents face barriers when searching for and selecting CCEE.
- Access issues include trouble finding providers they can afford that meet their expectations for quality and availability during the hours they need.
- Some parents have concerns about the reliability and trustworthiness of publicly available information on CCEE.
- The complexity of public CCEE programs requiring proof of eligibility is another reported challenge.
- Although searching for and selecting CCEE may be challenging at times for all families, some families face additional burden because of limited CCEE supply and other systemic barriers.
- Families facing greater challenges include those with infants, parents working nontraditional hours, families who live in low-income or rural areas, and those where the parents are immigrants unfamiliar with CCEE in the United States.
- The amount of available research evidence varied across key topics, with less known regarding how long it takes parents to find CCEE and why they use some information sources as they search for and select a provider.
Methods
We reviewed three types of literature: 1) CCEE search- and selection-related literature published between 2012 and 2021; 2) earlier theoretical and conceptual papers and key articles that provide background for the reader; and 3) select literature from other fields published between 2000 and 2021, such as behavioral science, communications, marketing, public health, and education, to provide examples of how people search for and make decisions about other services and products.
To identify the first set of literature (i.e., recent papers on CCEE search and selection), we used a systematic review process with defined search terms and inclusion and exclusion criteria to identify a comprehensive set of publications for screening. We identified 132 publications through database searches and an additional six unique publications from an open call for resources. We screened for relevance and excluded 61 publications that were deemed not relevant to the topic. Most excluded papers were about some aspect of CCEE but not parents’ search for, selection of, or use of CCEE. Among the 77 publications that were relevant, 17 were theoretical or conceptual papers that we reviewed for content and cited in the literature review. The other 60 publications presented findings from empirical studies and included a mix of peer-reviewed articles (n=40) and non-peer-reviewed research reports and briefs (n=20). We then assessed the credibility of the 60 relevant sources to ensure the research was of sufficient rigor for inclusion. No publications were removed from consideration based on rigor.
Citation
Sandstrom, Heather, Catherine Kuhns, Sarah Prendergast, Teresa Derrick-Mills, and Laura Wagner. 2024. “Parental Search and Selection of Child Care and Early Education: A Literature Review.” OPRE Report 2024-082. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.