Abstract
Increasingly, employed mothers are locating childcare arrangements with initially unfamiliar others, rather than with friends and family. In this indepth interview-based study of 32 employed mothers, the significance of shared values in childcare arrangements is examined. Employed mothers expressed the centrality of class-based and ethnic-based cultural practices and beliefs, as well as the importance of racial ethnic group membership, in their evaluation of childcare arrangements. They also discussed the difficulties of locating care when different preferences could not be located in the same childcare arrangement or their access to certain kinds of childcare was blocked. These findings suggest that race, ethnic-based, and class-based concerns will become increasingly important considerations as child care arrangements are more commonly made using commercial forms of care.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Auerbach, S. (1975). What Parents Want From Day Care. In S. Auerbach with J. A. Rivaldo (Eds.), Child Care: A Comprehensive Guide. Philosophy, Programs and Practices for the Creation of Quality Services for Children, Vol. 1. Rationale for Child Care Services, Programs vs. Politics (pp. 137–152). New York: Human Sciences Press, Inc.
Benin, M., and Chong, Y. (1993). Child Care Concerns of Employed Mothers. In J. Frankel (Ed.), The Employed Mother and the Family Context (pp. 229–244). New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Blau, D. M. (1991). The Quality of Child Care: An Economic Perspective. in D. M. Blau (Ed.), The Economics of Child Care (pp. 145–174). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Bogat, G. A., & Gensheimer, L. (1986). Discrepencies Between The Attitudes And Actions Of Parents Choosing Day Care. Child Care Quarterly, 15, 159–169.
Bradbard, M. R., & Endsley, R. C. (1986). Sources of Variance in Young Working Mothers' Satisfaction With Child Care: A Transactional Model and New Research Directions. Advances in Early Education and Day Care, 4, 181–207.
DeBord, K. (1991). Selecting Child Care: The Quality Question. In Community-based Child Care: An Action Manual for Communities Addressing Child Care. Publication 350-038. Blacksburg, VA: Virginia State University Extension.
Frankenberg, R. (1993). White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Hertz, R., & Ferguson, F.I.T. (1996). Childcare Choices and Constraints in the United States: Social Class, Race and the Influence of Family Views, Journal of Comparative Family Studies, XXVII(2), 249–280.
Hertz, R. (in press). A Typology of Approaches to Childcare: The Centerpiece of Organizing Family Life For Dual-Earner Couples. Journal of Family Issues.
Hofferth, S. L., Brayfield, A., Deich. S., & Holcomb, P. (1991). National Childcare Survey, 1990. Urban Institute Report 91-5. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute Press.
Joffe, C. E. (1977). Friendly Intruders: Childcare Professionals and Family Life. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Kisker, E., & Maynard, R. (1991). Quality, Cost, and Parental Choice of Child Care. In Blau, D. M. (Ed.), The Economics of Child Care (pp. 127–144). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Lajewski, H. C. (1959). Child Care Arrangements of Full-Time Working Mothers. Children's Bureau Publication No. 378. U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Social Security Administration: Government Printing Office.
Larner, M., & Mitchell, A. (1992). Meeting the Child Care Needs of Low-Income Families. Child & Youth Care Forum, 21, 317–334.
Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic Inquiry. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
National Maternal and Child Health Resource Center on Cultural Competency (1994). Brochure. 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, TX 78756.
Porter, T. (1991). Just Like any Parent: The Child Care Choices of Welfare Mothers in New Jersey. New York: Bank Street College of Education.
Powell, D. (1989). From the Perspective of Children: Continuity between Families and Early Childhood Programs. In D. Powell (Ed.), Families and Early Childhood Programs (pp. 23–51). Washington D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Rosier, K. B., & Corsaro, W. A. (1993). Competent Parents, Complex Lives: Managing Parenthood in Poverty. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 22, 171–204.
Siu, S. (1994). Taking No Chances: A Profile of a Chinese American Family's Support for School Success. Equity and Choice, 10, 23–32.
Tuominen, M. (1994). The Hidden Organization of Labor: Gender, Race/Ethnicity and Childcare Work in the Formal and Informal Economy. Sociological Perspectives, 37, 229–245.
Uttal, L. (1996). Custodial Care, Surrogate Care, and Coordinated Care: Employed Mothers and the Meaning of Child Care. Gender & Society, 10, 291–311.
Wrigley, J. (1989). Different Care for Different Kids: Social Class and Child Care Policy,” Educational Policy, 3, 421–439.
Wrigley, J. (1995). Other People's Children. New York: Basic Books.
Zigler, E., & Turner, P. (1982). Parents and Day Care Workers: A Failed Partnership? In E. Zigler and E. Gordon (Eds.), Day Care Scientific and Social Policy Issues (pp. 174–182). Boston, MA: Auburn House Press.
Zinsser, C. (1991). Raised in East Urban: Child Care Changes in a Working Class Community. New York: Teacher's College Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Uttal, L. “Trust Your Instincts”: Racial Ethnic and Class-Based Preferences in Employed Mothers' Childcare Choices. Qualitative Sociology 20, 253–274 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024765719203
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024765719203