Predicting Toddlers’ Problematic Behaviors: the role of poverty, parenting, and childcare

ABSTRACT

Our study extends the understanding of how three distinct environments including home, childcare, and neighbourhood may influence young children’s problematic behaviours among a sample of predominantly unmarried mothers residing in urban communities in the United States. With a sample of 791 mothers we examined whether neighbourhood disadvantage and poverty were associated with maternal self-efficacy and parenting stress, the level of cooperativeness between parents and early childcare educators, and the quality of childcare, and whether these factors are in turn associated with toddler behaviour problems. Parent-educator cooperation and the quality of childcare were modest, yet significant protective factors for toddlers’ problematic behaviours while maternal parenting stress was the strongest risk factor. Mothers’ self-efficacy was indirectly associated with problematic behaviours. Neighbourhood poverty was also identified as a risk factor. Our study highlights the importance of cooperative parent-educator relationships for families with lower incomes and the need to account for the neighbourhood context.

KEYWORDS:

• Poverty
• toddler development
• problematic behaviours
• family engagement
• parent-educator cooperation
• parent-educator relationships

Disclosure statement

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

Notes

1 Early childhood educators have been described as caregivers, babysitters, specialists, advocates, teachers, and foundation builders due to their vast and varied roles and responsibilities. It has been challenging to define the qualities, knowledge, and attributes that are desirable for early childhood educators (Harwood, Klopper, Osanyin, & Vanderlee, 2012). According to the U.S. Department of Education, early childhood educators are defined as: ‘any professionals working in early learning and development programs, including but not limited to center-based and family childcare providers, infant and toddler specialists, early intervention specialists and early childhood special educators, home visitors, related service providers, administrators (U.S. Department of Education, 2020).’ Indeed, home-based childcare is the most prevalent form of noncustodial childcare in the U.S.; home-based educators include those who work in family childcare homes and private household childcare. In recent studies, the terms of early childhood educators, teachers, and care providers have been interchangeably used in the field of early childhood education (see Roberts, Gallagher, Daro, Iruka, & Sarver, 2019; Tonyan, Paulsell, & Shivers, 2017).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Office of Research and Economic Development University of Nebraska Lincoln under Research Council Grant-in-Aid (grant number 15446).

Notes on contributors

Jeong-Kyun Choi

Jeong-Kyun Choi is an Associate Professor in Child, Youth and Family Studies at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His research interests involve around poverty, family process, and child development.

Holly Hatton-Bowers

Holly Hatton-Bowers is an Assistant Professor in Child, Youth and Family Studies at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Her primary areas of interest and scholarly activity include creating and implementing programmes designed to enhance the quality of early childhood development and early care and education and to use strategies that cultivate resilience, compassion, and kindness among caregivers and families.

Jiwon Shin

Jiwon Shin is a doctoral student in Child, Youth and Family Studies at University of Nebraska-Lincoln.