Term of Graduation

Spring 1968

Date of Publication

5-6-1968

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Social Work (MSW)

Department

Social Work

Language

English

Subjects

Day care centers

DOI

10.15760/etd.492

Physical Description

1 online resource (136 pages)

Abstract

A study of the attitudes of 40 mothers toward their child care arrangements tested hypotheses concerning the conditions of economic and child care necessity under which mothers of two socio-economic groups would be satisfied with their arrangements. It was hypothesized that the satisfaction with an arrangement would be associated inversely with economic necessity and child care necessity. A prediction was also made that the mothers' expressive satisfactions with the child care arrangements (benefits to the child and relationship to the sitter) would only be realized after the instrumental necessities of convenience and dependability of the arrangement were met.

Interest in this study developed from Perry et al. (1967) where satisfaction with child care arrangements of employed mothers was studied. However, this study broadened the area of investigation to include all mothers using child care arrangements.

A sample of 40 mothers was chosen, 20 from an upper middle class residential area, and 20 women receiving Aid to Dependent Children. The attitudes of these women were assessed through an interview schedule, a Likert scale of satisfaction items, and an independent rating by the interviewer. Four case studies of two mothers from each group were used to enrich the study with further descriptive data on the respective life styles of the two socioeconomic groups.

No difference was found between the two samples in the level of satisfaction with the child care arrangement. However, the groups did differ in the pattern of satisfactions reported. Guttman scale patterns of the four subscales (convenience, money, benefits to child, and relationship to sitter) were reversed for the two groups. This difference in patterns was interpreted as a reflection of the socioeconomic standing and life circumstances of the mothers.

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Comments

Other authors: Joan Beck Hansen, Ruth Townsend Hardy, Donna Mae Landye, Sandra Mae Poirier

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Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/8411

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