Early use of centre-based childcare can be a contentious issue for parents.
However, the Sydney Morning Herald reports today on how a new study shows that among two- and three-years-olds in childcare centres, no differences in behaviour or adjustment were apparent between the children who had started formal care as babies and those who had started later after having been at home with a parent or other carer.
The associate professor of early childhood at Charles Sturt University, Linda Harrison, told the Sydney Morning Herald, that the latest findings were ''good news for parents''.
''There were no discernible differences between the two groups after taking into account factors such as the socio-economic status of the families,'' Dr Harrison said.
Based on thousands of children tracked in the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children, the study used nine measures to examine how the two- and three-year-olds were faring.
These included how the children got on with other children, and with childcare workers, the level of problem behaviours, and how much they appeared to enjoy their activities.
The findings were based mostly on reports by teachers as well as by parents.
The study also tested whether longer hours in care were associated with worse outcomes. It found the more the toddlers were at the centre, the happier and more comfortable they were, but they also had more conflicts with carers.
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