Day Care Linked to Later Behavior Problems

Mar 27, 09:07 AM

Current Headlines: U.S. children who spent time in day care settings may have more problems with aggressive and disobedient behavior in elementary school, a study found.

However, problem behaviors and teacher-child conflicts experienced by children who spent extensive time in other types of child care did not continue beyond first grade, according to the March-April issue of the journal Child Development.

The study is the latest installment of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development study, started in 1991 to examine relationships between children's care in the first 54 months of life and subsequent development. Researchers also found children with higher-quality early child care have somewhat better vocabularies through fifth grade than children who are enrolled in lower-quality care.

In addition, the study found math and reading gains made by children in high-quality child care, thought to last through third grade, did not continue beyond first grade.

Finally, the study found that the quality of parenting was a far stronger and more consistent predictor of school achievement and behavior than child care.