with infants (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 1997); (3) gains in the child's sense of personal competence (Fowler, Ogston, Roberts-Fiati & Swenson, 1997); (4) gains in prosocial behavior (Honig, 1997); (5) gains in learning personal hygiene (Roberts, 1996); (6) decreases in behavioral problems in later school life (Pettit, Laird, Dodge & Bates, 1997) and (6) assistance in dealing with trauma and stress children experienced as a result of homelessness (Douglass, 1996).
It is important to realize that the effects of day care centers can and do vary greatly as a function of several variables. In other words, it should not be thought that all day care centers automatically produce positive effects on children. For example, the positive effects of day care just delineated tend to be fond predominately in day care centers with high adult-to-child rations and stable, competent, highly involved staff who are sensitive to ch
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