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A Comparative Study of Structural and Process Quality in Center-Based and Family-Based Child Care Services

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Abstract

This study seeks to determine whether center-based and family-based child care services differ with respect to process quality, as measured by the Educative Quality Observation Scales (EQOS, Bourgon and Lavallée 2004a, b, c), for groups of children 18 months old and younger. It also seeks to identify structural variables associated with process quality in these settings. The study included two types of regulated child care settings located in the greater Montreal area (center-based: N = 53 and family-based: N = 36). Results indicate that process quality was lower in family-based child care than in center-based child care for the majority of elements measured by the EQOS. Hierarchical regression analyses indicate that higher levels of process quality were associated with structural variables, including a lower adult-child ratio, the presence of more staff with specialized early childhood education training, and center-based care. The discussion focuses on strategies to improve these types of child care services.

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  1. Département d’éducation et pédagogie, Université du Québec à Montréal, C.P. 8888, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3P8, Canada

    Nathalie Bigras, Caroline Bouchard, Gilles Cantin, Lise Lemay & Annie Charron

  2. Département de psychologie, Université du Québec à Montréal, C.P. 8888, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3P8, Canada

    Liesette Brunson & Mélissa Tremblay

  3. Département de psychoéducation et psychologie, Université du Québec en Outaouais, 283, boul. Taché, Gatineau, QC, J8X 3X7, Canada

    Sylvain Coutu

  4. Département d’éducation et formation spécialisée, Université du Québec à Montréal, C.P. 8888, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3P8, Canada

    Christa Japel

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Bigras, N., Bouchard, C., Cantin, G. et al. A Comparative Study of Structural and Process Quality in Center-Based and Family-Based Child Care Services. Child Youth Care Forum 39, 129–150 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-009-9088-4

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