Outline and Evaluate Research into the Effects of Daycare on Children's Social Behaviour

Daycare is regular, temporary separation outside the home environment without the presence of a family member; in nurseries, playgroups, crèches, under supervision of childminders etc. Peer relationships are thought to play an important role in children’s development; when a child is left separated from its primary caregiver for the first time, typically when they begin school, around the age of 3/4 , they are often very unsociable and timid, a sign of fear and un-ease due to being in unfamiliar territory and with different people who they are unassociated with.

Shea (1981) conducted a field study of children in their first 10 weeks at school and observed how they changed over this period. From his research, he found that children began to become more sociable; standing closer together in groups; further from teachers and began more ‘rough-and-tumble’ play as they feel more confident, this is typical behaviour of a natural instinct in humans to be a dominant figure in a group. This data was quantifiable, as the behavioural traits could be numerically recorded; distance from teachers and the frequency of interaction with others. From this research, Shea found that daycare helps social development and peer relations, as it promotes children to engage with other people but is a disadvantage as it can often involve violence to be noticed, which can lead to other problems in latter life.

This research is supported by studies such as Anderson (1989-1992) and the EPPE Project. Anderson conducted a study where social and cognitive progress of children in Swedish day care was analysed. The results of the test concluded that day care helps social development and improves peer relations. This research mustn’t be considered 100% conclusive however as Swedish daycare is of a particularly good standard compared with other parts of the world so results cannot be generalised. However, the EPPE project was a very large study of 3000 children in the UK and similar results were observed to those in Sweden, so a cross-culture clash may be the answer for discrepancies in research and