Development of kindergarten children based on child care arrangements

The effects of day care on the development of 835 kindergarten children were analyzed. Associations with child care arrangements (no day care, part-time care, and full-time day care) from birth to age 5 and for only the first year of life are discussed. Overall differences in early child care arrangements were more predictive of differences in social development than of differences in intellectual and gross motor performance. Similarities in certain behavioral variables between children at home and in full-time care are noted. Socioeconomic status, sex, and race differences are also reported.