Can Early Childhood Education Be Compensatory? Examining the Benefits of Child Care Among Children Who Experience Neglect

ABSTRACT

Research Findings: Children that experience neglect are at risk for maladaptive outcomes. One potential resource for these children is early childhood education (ECE), but there is currently limited evidence which is compounded by data limitations. This study used data from the National Study of Child and Adolescent Well-being II (N = 1,385) to compare children’s cognitive and social-emotional outcomes among children involved in child protective services that experienced either no care, informal care, or formal care, as well as moderation by type of neglect. Results suggest that ECE was related to increased cognitive and social skills and decreased behavior problems, depending on whether the child attended informal or formal care, with some associations being stronger for children that experienced neglect. Practice or Policy: These findings documenting the benefits of ECE have important implications for practitioners and policymakers in the intersection of ECE and child protective services.

Acknowledgement

The author acknowledges the support of grants from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (T32 HD007081-35, PI: R. Kelly Raley; T32 HD049302, PI: Deborah Ehrenthal).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by grants from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development [T32 HD007081-35, PI: R. Kelly Raley; T32 HD049302, PI: Deborah Ehrenthal].