Mothers of autistic children often report poor mental health outcomes. One established risk factor for these outcomes is the child having a medical home. This study examined possible mediating variables (coping, social support) in this relationship in 988 mothers of autistic children from the 2017/2018 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH).…

The literature strongly emphasises the importance of constructive relationships between parents and their children's caregivers. However, minimal empirical research has investigated relationships between language minority parents and caregivers in childcare. This large-scale study seeks to fill this gap by exploring the quality of the language…

Background: Understanding the correlates of young children's social emotional development is important to optimally support children's long-term success. Objective: This study examined the associations among dimensions of parent-teacher cocaring relationships, infants' and toddlers' social emotional adjustment, and parent-child closeness and…

Family engagement is essential to high quality services for all children in early childhood care and education. From the beginning of life, families nurture their children and the capacities they will need to be ready for school. The Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (PFCE) Framework for Early Childhood Systems is a guide to understanding…

We discuss oral history interviews with academics who laid the foundation of research and pedagogies in daycare for under three-year-olds in Europe and North and South America since the 1970s. Their work is clearly embedded in the social-political context of their country: the left-wing programmes for disadvantaged families in the U.S.A.;…

To date, there has been little research into the school's practices that influence caregiver involvement in the education of students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) that gives voice to both families and teachers, and little research has used a mixed-methods approach. In contrast to those studies that mainly concentrate on qualitative inquiry…

Parental mentalizing, which is the capacity to understand behavior in terms of mental states and to reflect this back to a child through speech, is a key construct in child development. Adults with high mentalization promote children's secure attachment, mentalization and self-regulation. This study describes this competency in a sample of…

This Q methodological study explores emotional experiences and coping of daycare staff when working with children of divorce and their families. Two main coping strategies among daycare staff were identified: 1) Confident copers, and 2) Non-confident copers. Interviews exemplify the two main experiences. Both groups may struggle with coping in…

Despite the importance of establishing meaningful parent-caregiver relationships, little is known about these dyadic relationships among beginning caregivers, who often feel insufficiently prepared to build successful alliances with parents. The present study examined the congruence between parents' and beginning caregivers' perceptions of their…

This article describes an innovative practice in family involvement developed by one early care and education center engaged in professional development. The Hopes and Dreams Project documented family involvement in children's lives and education through the pairing of pictures and narratives about their lives, histories, priorities, goals, and…

A parenting curriculum developed for incarcerated mothers was evaluated using a pretest, posttest, follow-up design with 57 women incarcerated in state prisons. Developmental psychologists delivered a 12-session curriculum focused on parenting issues unique to incarcerated parents. Each class met for 2 hours and followed a prepared curriculum that…

Effective relationships with parents are a cornerstone of high quality early childhood programs. When parents and professionals see each other as allies in caring for young children, everyone benefits. When parents are especially stressed or lacking in support, it can affect the way they relate to their children and, in some families, the risk for…

Summarizes information on possible infertility treatments and discusses the needs they create and the issues they raise for children and parents. Offers ideas on what early childhood caregivers and educators can do to help families who are engaging in these treatments. (JW)

Studied children's placements during their mother's incarceration and their caregiver's ability to provide for their well-being. Found that mothers were active in and satisfied with the placement. The majority of children remained within an extended kinship system. Caregivers were often angry with the mother, rating her below average in mothering…

Notes that the introduction of children of staff into programs can be problematic; offers suggestions for a smooth transition. Suggests that role distinctions should be clarified for staff-parent, staff-child and others to help all parties understand their particular responsibilities. An even application of center rules and open communication with…