Educational Daycare from Infancy and Externalizing and Internalizing Behaviors in Early Childhood: Differential Effect by Children's Vulnerability

This study compares externalizing and internalizing behaviors in toddlerhood and preschool years across 66 non-vulnerable and vulnerable children attending an educational daycare (n = 45) or remaining under parental care (n = 21). Results indicate that, for non-vulnerable children, type of care isn’t associated with externalizing and internalizing behaviors. However, for vulnerable children, attending a daycare is associated with a reduction in externalizing behaviors and with higher (but also decreasing) internalizing behaviors between 2 and 4 years of age. In contrast, parental care is associated with an increase in both externalizing and internalizing behaviors.