Early childhood education and care context and cortisol from saliva and hair among 3–6-year-old children

ABSTRACT

This study examined several early childhood education and care (ECEC) factors and their relation to children’s salivary cortisol slope and hair cortisol concentration (HCC). The study is part of the cross-sectional DAGIS study, conducted in 2015–2016, examining 66 preschools and 677 children aged 3–6 years in Finland. Two saliva samples from one childcare day and a hair sample were collected from the children. Educators’ education level, perceived stress, and occupational well-being factors, group size, child-adult ratio, and amount of childcare per week were assessed by questionnaires filled in by educators and guardians. Higher educators’ education level was associated with a higher likelihood of children having a declining salivary cortisol slope. Educators with higher perceived stress were associated with a lower likelihood of children having a declining cortisol slope, but the result was attenuated in the adjusted model. Child-adult ratio was negatively associated with HCC. The results indicate that educators’ higher education level and possibly lower stress associate with a favourable cortisol profile in children, suggesting less stress. These factors should receive attention when considering children’s stress at childcare.

KEYWORDS:

• Cortisol
• childcare
• ECEC centre
• stress biomarkers
• educator

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the ECEC centres, their personnel, and the families for their participation in the DAGIS study, and the research staff for data collection. The collaborating partners of the DAGIS study are thanked for providing assistance in designing the DAGIS study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Academy of Finland (Grants 285439, 287288, 288038, 315816)