Background

Research finds center-based child care typically benefits children of low socio-economic status (SES) but few studies have examined if it also reduces inequalities in developmental disadvantage.

Objective

I test if the length of time in center-based care between ages one and three years associates with child development scores at age three years, focusing on the impact for groups of children in the lower tercile of child development scores and in the lower SES tercile.

Method

Using data from 1,606 children collected in a nationally representative Chilean survey, I apply a value-added approach to measure gains in child development scores between age one and three years that are associated with length of time in center-based child care.

Results

Disadvantages at age one year were associated with lower child development scores at age three years. No benefits of additional time in center-based care were found for the non-disadvantaged group, but positive associations were found between more time in center-based care and child development outcomes for children with the SES disadvantage only. Center-based care was not associated with child development trajectories of children with lower child development scores at age one year, no matter their SES status.

Conclusions

There is evidence that Chilean center-based child care reduces SES inequality in child development scores between ages one and three years, but only if children already were not low-scorers at age one year.

中文翻译：

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以中心为基础的儿童保育和弱势儿童儿童发展成果的差异化改善

 背景

研究发现，以中心为基础的儿童保育通常有利于社会经济地位（SES）较低的儿童，但很少有研究探讨它是否也能减少发展不利的不平等。

 客观的

我测试了一岁到三岁之间在中心护理的时间长度是否与三岁时的儿童发展得分相关，重点关注对儿童发展得分较低的三分之一和社会经济地位较低的三分位数的儿童群体的影响。

 方法

我利用智利全国代表性调查中收集的 1,606 名儿童的数据，采用增值方法来衡量 1 至 3 岁儿童发育得分的提高，这些得分与中心托儿所的时间长度相关。

 结果

一岁时的劣势与三岁时儿童发育得分较低有关。对于非弱势群体来说，没有发现额外的中心护理时间有任何好处，但仅对于社会经济地位处于劣势的儿童来说，更多的中心护理时间与儿童发展结果之间存在正相关。中心护理与儿童一岁时发育得分较低的儿童的儿童发育轨迹无关，无论其社会经济地位状况如何。

 结论

有证据表明，智利以中心为基础的儿童保育减少了一岁至三岁儿童发展分数的社会经济地位不平等，但前提是儿童在一岁时已经不是低分者。