Reply to Childcare : what the science says

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]To me it seems like you can't just compare kids who go to daycare vs kids who don't and only look at daycare as the determining factor in why they may have different outcomes.

What I mean is, aren't kids who are in daycare more likely to have parents who have stressful jobs/stressful lives than parents who have the privilege of having one parent stay home w/ kids? Doesn't stress factor in as a reason why those kids may be more likely to have behavior challenges? I feel like stress in the home would be more likely to contribute to behavior problems than whether or not the kid went to daycare as a toddler.

And aren't parents who choose to put their kids in daycare when they do have other options (most families don't have any other choice but to put kids in daycare as in most families, both parents have to work) also more likely to make other decisions that affect their kids' development/behavior? So if you're a family who chooses daycare when you could choose to have a SAHP or nanny instead, aren't you likely choosing daycare because your kid already exhibits difficult behavior or learning challenges or seems like they need more socialization or whatever reason and wouldn't that kid then be more likely to still have that behavior issue/learning challenge as they get older? If a kid is especially difficult at age 2, aren't they also more likely to still be a more difficult child once they reach school age?

It just seems like a study that doesn't take other factors into account.
[/quote]

Did you really spend that many paragraphs navel gazing about how dual income families are stressed and families with a SAHP are privileged?

There’s a lot of SAHMs out there who had no choice because they couldn’t afford childcare. Wouldn’t really call that privileged. And I I know a lot of dual income families like mine who have flexible, low stress jobs because we don’t need a single high earner bearing the stress of being a sole breadwinner.

I’m not sure being a SAHM with a big law spouse (to provide that “privilege”) is actually better than 2 parents who are home a lot. I’m glad we used daycare/preschool so I could stay in the workforce and DH can also have a low stress job that allows him to coach our kids’ sports teams even at 5 pm practices, be home for dinner every night, help handle sick days, etc. And I now have enough flexibility/seniority in my career that I am fully remote and home to get my kids off the bus every day.

OTOH, I grew up with a SAHM who was constantly stressed from handling all house/kid stuff, and a breadwinner dad who worked late and was gone on business travel a lot. Not what I wanted for my own family. [/quote]

How is that navel gazing? Do you know what navel gazing means?[/quote]

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