The first July 2008 did the Swedish government introduce a new family policy, the child care allowance. This essay is a case study of how the child care allowance has influenced families and which possible effects that the child care allowance can lead to. In order to respond to the issue has family models been used in order to analyze the results from a questionnaire survey distributed to households which has become granted child care allowance in Växjö municipality. Therefore is this essay’s premier contribution to the social science a description of how families have reasoned and decided about their child-care. The main result from the essay's empirical survey is that it’s mainly women that are influenced by the grant, through that they lower the scope on their hour of work. This fact can on longer view give effects on the Swedish labor market, when women's position on the labor market are to be weakened compared with the men's.

La saine alimentation dès le plus jeune âge est essentielle dans la prévention de l’obésité. Pour y arriver, les mesures de promotion doivent être présentes dans tous les milieux fréquentés par l’enfant, incluant le service de garde (SG). C’est d’ailleurs l’un des buts de l’organisme Croquarium avec son programme Un trésor dans mon jardin (UTJ). Objectif. Analyser les perceptions d’intervenantes du milieu de la petite enfance concernant l’implantation et l’impact du programme UTJ sur l’environnement alimentaire des enfants qui y sont exposés. Méthode. Les perceptions des intervenantes en SG et de Croquarium ont été recueillies par le biais d’entretiens semi-dirigés. L’analyse qualitative des données est basée sur une adaptation de la théorie écologique du développement humain de Bronfenbrenner. Résultats. Au total, quatorze entrevues ont été menées. Les répondantes ont perçu des changements dans plusieurs sphères de l’environnement alimentaire, soit dans les activités réalisées avec les enfants et leurs comportements face à l’alimentation, mais aussi au niveau des relations avec les parents. De plus, il semble que les principales barrières à la pérennité d’UTJ soient le manque de temps, une implication déficiente des intervenantes en SG et des ressources financières insuffisantes. Conclusion. Cette étude a permis de mieux comprendre comment est implanté UTJ en SG. Entre autres, il semble que l’arrivée d’UTJ ait modifié positivement l’environnement alimentaire des enfants participants. Toutefois, les données recueillies suggèrent que pour assurer la pérennité du programme en SG, l’implication de tous les acteurs du milieu est nécessaire. / Healthy eating starting during early childhood is essential for obesity prevention. To be successful, its promotion must be done everywhere children evolve, including in child-care settings. This is one of the goals pursued by the organization Croquarium with their program Un trésor dans mon jardin (a treasure in my garden) (UTJ). Objective. To analyse child care providers’ and Croquarium team members’ perceptions of the implementation and impact of UTJ on the food environment of children exposed to this project. Methods. Respondents’ perceptions were obtained by semi-structured interviews. Qualitative analysis of the data was based on an adaptation of Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Social Theory. Results. In the end, fourteen interviews were conducted. Respondents perceived changes in many areas, like in the type of activities realized with children and their behaviours around food, but also in the communications with parents. Furthermore, it seems that the major obstacles of UTJ’s continuity is the lack of time, the lack of involvement from child-care providers and insufficient financial resources. Conclusion. This study gives us a better understanding of how UTJ is implemented in child-care settings. Also, it appears that UTJ has a positive influence on the food environment of participating children. However, data suggest that the involvement of every stakeholder is needed.

This dissertation includes three papers that examine the role of child care policy in promoting early childhood education and care and parental labor supply. Paper one investigates the effects of universal pre-kindergarten on center-based early education and care enrollment and child care expenditures by household income with a focus on middle-income children. Paper two considers how the generosity of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) benefits is associated with child care utilization and maternal labor supply. Paper three assesses the role of coresident grandparents in parental labor supply during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Households experiencing "food insecurity" have limited access to food due to a lack of money or resources. Poor nutrition, from food insecurity, can impact physical and cognitive development of children. Study objectives were to document the prevalence of Tennessee child care programs screening for food insecurity, explore differences between programs receiving child and adult care food program (CACFP) funding and those screening for food insecurity, and understand possible burdens food insecurity places on child care families as perceived by child care program directors. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study of licensed Tennessee child care programs, a 10-question survey and four-question follow-up survey were electronically distributed. Analysis included descriptive statistics, a chi-square of programs receiving CACFP funds and screening for food insecurity, and themes analysis of open-ended responses. RESULTS: The average child care program enrollment (N = 272) was 80.16 with programs serving mostly preschoolers (98.53%) and toddlers (91.91%). Over half (56.99%) of programs reported they received CACFP funding, yet only 9.19% screen for food insecurity. Chi-square analysis found that programs receiving CACFP funds differ significantly on whether they screen households for food insecurity [Formula: see text] (1, n = 237) = 16.93, p ≤ 0.001. Themes analysis (n = 41) revealed that many child care program directors do not view food insecurity as a burden for families. CONCLUSIONS: Child care programs receiving CACFP funds are more likely to screen families for food insecurity than programs who do not. Programs indicate a willingness to include food insecurity screening questions on child care paperwork.

The abuse of substances by South African young people has led to the development of specialised residential treatment programmes. This qualitative and phenomenological study sought to explore child and youth care interventions which contributes towards children’s recovery from substance abuse/dependency. Data was collected through purposive sampling, with face -to -face interviews with a broad interview guide and it’s analysis was influenced by Patton and Creswell’s eight steps for qualitative data analysis and interpretation. The study confirmed the involvement of South African child and youth care workers in substance abuse programmes for young people. Specific interventions such as an existence of a therapeutic relationship between child and youth care workers, the use of the relationship as a model for other relationships, the availability and presence of the child and youth care worker, the adolescent development programme and young people’s involvement in their individual development programme that contributed to recovery from substance dependency were identified. / Social Work / M. Tech. (Child and Youth Care)

This study focused on the psychosocial effects of parental loss on children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. The primary aim of the research was to explore the psychosocial effects of parental loss on children orphaned by HIV/AIDS through the eyes of the caregivers. Five participants were selected for this study using convenience sampling. The data was collected using face-to-face semi-structured interviews. The interviews were analysed using thematic content analysis and themes were extracted and presented. The results of this study indicate that children orphaned by HIV/AIDS living in the children’s home experience many psychosocial problems. Further research on the psychosocial issues specific to orphaned children raised in children’s homes in rural areas is recommended / Psychology / M. A. (Clinical Psychology)

Die vorliegende Arbeit setzt sich mit der öffentlichen Kinderbetreuung in Deutschland auseinander. Im Fokus stehen dabei die Determinanten der regional unterschiedlichen Kindergartengebühren, die Nachfrage nach öffentlicher Kinderbetreuung einschließlich der daraus resultierenden Verteilungswirkungen, die kommunale Effizienz in der Bereitstellung sowie die Anpassbarkeit der kommunalen Ausgaben an sich ändernde Nachfragemuster. Ein besonderes Augenmerk wird auf die Bereitstellung öffentlicher Kindergärtenplätze für Kinder im Alter von vier Jahren bis zum Schuleintritt gelegt. Zum Zeitpunkt der Datenerfassung war nur für diese Gruppe ein rechtlicher Betreuungsrahmen vorgegeben, der verschiedene Regionen miteinander vergleichbar macht und somit eine wesentliche Grundlage für die vorgenommene empirische Analyse darstellt. Hinsichtlich der Gebührenunterschiede zeigt sich, dass Städte die Kinderbetreuungsgebühren als Instrument für einen aktiven Standortwettbewerb nutzen. In Städten mit einem hohen Anteil junger Bevölkerung sind die Gebühren geringer als in anderen Städten. Zugleich verlangen Städte, die eine höhere Betreuungsqualität bereitstellen, geringere Gebühren als Städte mit einer geringeren Betreuungsqualität. Aufgrund einkommensabhängiger Gebühren resultieren aus der Nachfrage nach öffentlicher Kinderbetreuung Einkommensumverteilungseffekte. Nach der ökonomischen Theorie sollte die Nachfrage nach Kinderbetreuung im Einkommen der Eltern steigen und im Preis der Betreuung fallen. Bei einer Einkommensänderung wirken demnach zwei gegenläufige Effekte gleichzeitig auf die Nachfrage: Eine höhere Zahlungsbereitschaft steht einem höheren Preis gegenüber. Die empirische Analyse zeigt, dass in Deutschland der negative Preiseffekt den positiven Einkommenseffekt der Nachfrage überwiegt. Die Nachfrage nach öffentlicher Kinderbetreuung ist somit im Einkommen der Eltern rückläufig, wodurch es zu einer Einkommensumverteilung von einkommensstärkeren zu einkommensschwächeren Haushalten kommt. Unterschiedliche Gebühren in den Kommunen können auch auf eine unterschiedliche Effizienz in der Bereitstellung öffentlicher Kinderbetreuung zurückzuführen sein. Die Ergebnisse einer empirischen Effizienzanalyse zeigen, dass die betrachteten Kommunen unterschiedlich gut in der Lage sind, eine bestimmte Betreuungskapazität mit geringstmöglichem Mitteleinsatz zu erreichen. Die Median-Kommune gibt etwa 25 % mehr aus, als es für das Betreuungsangebot erforderlich wäre. Dieses Ergebnis bleibt erhalten, wenn für die Ergebnisse der betreuten Kinder in ihren Schuleingangstests kontrolliert wird. Bestimmte Einflussfaktoren bedingen die Ineffizienzen vor Ort. Beispielsweise sind die Kommunen mit einem ehrenamtlichen Bürgermeister bzw. solche Kommunen mit geringer Einwohnerzahl vergleichsweise ineffizient. Gleiches gilt auch für Kommunen mit einem hohen Anteil der über-65-Jährigen Bevölkerungsgruppe. Vor dem Hintergrund des demografischen Wandels muss auch die Anpassbarkeit kommunaler Ausgaben für Kinderbetreuung an sich ändernde Nachfragemuster in den Blick genommen werden. Es wird gezeigt, dass sich die Ausgaben für Kinderbetreuung proportional an die Nutzerzahl anpassen lassen, ohne dass dabei die Qualität der Leistungserstellung beeinträchtigt werden muss. Die Anpassungen müssen jedoch diskretionär und regelmäßig erfolgen, da andernfalls ein ineffizientes Betreuungsangebot zu überhöhten Kosten unterhalten wird.

This thesis looks at how parental leave and early child care policies in the U.S. can reshape our understanding of the role of government, parental responsibility, and gender within paid labor in order to dismantle the systems of oppression and domination that lead to motherhood inequality. The United States is the only developed economy without mandated paid parental leave, and privatized child care costs can be greater than tuition at public universities. As a result, mothers, still overwhelmingly the primary caregivers in families, are forced to juggle the responsibilities of paid and domestic labor in a way that leads to employment discrimination. Because policies have a unique power to incentivize behavior and change socially ingrained biases, I propose that Congress institute paid parental leave through the FAMILY Act and revives the Comprehensive Child Development Act of 1971 to establish public child care.

This dissertation examines the effect of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) on labor force participation of single mothers by controlling for child care costs. Based on a simple model of utility maximizing households that jointly determine hours worked and hours of non-maternal child care demanded, I estimate the change in the labor force participation rate of single mothers following the EITC expansions of the 1990s. In order to investigate the usage of different modes of childcare services, a multinomial logit model has been estimated. The data source for the study is topical module panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) for the years 1992, 1993, 1996 and 2001. These panels were selected to reflect the time horizon during which the policy changes of the 1990s took place. The empirical estimation strategy is designed to deal with the problems of both selection bias and simultaneity in choosing hours worked and hours of non-maternal child care demanded. Due attention has been paid to the issue of identification of the empirical equations to be estimated in this paper.

Legislation in South Africa pertaining to the care and protection of children is presently being revised and changed. Should alternative care be necessary for a vulnerable child, the Children's Act 38/2005 prioritises a foster care placement over a child and youth care centre of which a Children's Home is a part. Given the steady decline in traditional family living due to, amongst other things HIV/AIDS, poverty and unemployment in South Africa, the dominant view of family care being prioritised may not always be feasible in reality. The study researched this view by hearing the voices of children and their caregivers, in both foster care and in Children's Homes by conducting a qualitative study based on the exploratory and descriptive designs A purposive sampling strategy was used as there were clear criteria for the selection of participants. There were two sample groups. One consisted of child participants and the other consisted of caregivers viz. foster parents and child-care workers. Caregivers were included for the purposes of enhancing reliability, validity and trustworthiness of the study. Data was collected by means of semi-structured in depth interviews with the child participants. Two focus groups were held with the caregivers; one with the foster parents and the other with the child-care workers. Both the in depth interviews as well as the focus group discussions were guided by similar themes that were linked to the main objectives of the study. The findings revealed that children's voices were largely absent in decisions pertaining to their well being; that they preferred to live with families of origin as opposed to alternative care and should they be placed in alternative care, foster care was preferred to Children's Homes. The findings further emphasized the need for infrastructural support such as family preservation programmes, financial and social work support for all poverty stricken families and strengthened human resources for Children's Homes. Recommendations therefore centred around ways in which to capacitate families of origin; ways of including children in decision making and the necessary infrastructural support to ensure optimum care for vulnerable children. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2007