QUALITY OF CENTER CHILD-CARE AND INFANT COGNITIVE AND LANGUAGE-DEVELOPMENT

The relations between quality of center-based child care and infant co gnitive and language development were examined in a sample of 79 Afric an-American 12-month-old infants. Both structural and process measures of quality of child care were collected through interviews with the c enter director and observation of the infant classroom. Results indica ted that quality of infant care positively correlated with scores on s tandardized assessments of cognitive development (Bayley Scales of Inf ant Development), language development (Sequenced Inventory of Communi cation Development), and communication skills (Communication and Symbo lic Behavior Scales). In addition, quality of care in child care cente rs and at home was positively related. Analyses that adjusted for this association between quality of care at home and in child care suggest ed that the process measure of quality of child care independently rel ated to the infant's cognitive development, and one structural measure , the infant-adult ratio, independently related to the infant's overal l communication skills. Neither child nor family factors was found to moderate the association between child care quality and infant develop ment. These findings, in conjunction with the growing child care liter ature, suggest that researchers and policymakers should focus on how q uality of child care can be improved to enhance, not impair, infant de velopment.