PARENTAL LEAVE AND CHILD CARE ARRANGEMENTS DURING THE FIRST 12 MONTHS OF LIFE ARE ASSOCIATED WITH CHILDREN’S DEVELOPMENT FIVE YEARS LATER

Abstract

Infancy and early childhood are critical periods of development. Social policies, such as maternity and parental leave, play an important role in enabling Canadian parents to care for their children during this time. Using Early Development Instrument (EDI) and Kindergarten Parent Survey (KPS) data from Brantford and Brant County, Ontario, this study examined the association between parental leave and type of care during the first 12 months of life and children’s development in senior kindergarten. The EDI assesses physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development as well as future academic vulnerability. The KPS collects information about children’s preschool experiences. Parental care during the first year of life was associated with better child development on some, but not all, developmental variables among children attending senior kindergarten in 2011-2012 in Brant.

Keywords

• early childhood development
• maternal leave
• parental leave
• child care
• social policies