The first months of life are critical for establishing neural connections relevant for social and cognitive development. Yet, the United States lacks a national policy of paid family leave during this important period of brain development. This study examined associations between paid leave and infant electroencephalography (EEG) at 3 months in a…

Most women must decide whether to work for pay while mothering or make mothering their sole social role. Often this decision is portrayed in terms of whether they will be "stay-at-home" and presumably "full-time" mothers, or "working mothers" and therefore ones who prioritize paid work over caregiving. Inferred within this construction is women's…

This article reviews early education and care policies in the United Kingdom since 1997, when a Labour Government came to power, and sets them in the wider context of international changes. It argues that the Labour Government has, by intention and by default, supported the development of private sector, and especially corporate sector childcare.…

Examined the relationship between the length of time worked by mothers receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children and three categories of variables. Only economic factors appeared to significantly affect the mothers' decision whether to work. (Author)

Recent trends in U.S. families include increased numbers of single-parent families, stepfamilies, teen pregnancies, working mothers, and children living in poverty. Public policy should focus on affordable housing, access to health and child care, education and job training, and jobs that provide adequate income. (SK)

This paper develops and estimates a model for the choice of part-time and full-time employment and the decision to pay for childcare among single mothers. The results indicate that a lower childcare price and a higher full-time wage rate both lead to an increase in overall employment and the use of paid childcare. The part-time wage effects are…

Because female heads of families tend to have less continuity of employment than their male counterparts do, they are twice as likely to face unemployment without unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. If Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), which is the primary income support program for impoverished single mothers and their children…

Writing that makes one think, writing that enriches one's understanding of the past and present, that's what Cokie Roberts' book, "We Are Our Mothers' Daughters" provides, and that, too, is what the authors of this issue of the "Journal of Women in Educational Leadership" provide. Roberts' background as a news analyst covering politics, Congress…

The question of whether recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) can reasonably be expected to work full time year-round given their available employment opportunities and living conditions was examined in a ongoing study. The study used the U.S. Bureau of the Census' Survey of Income and Program Participation to develop a…

Two areas of social action in developing nations that have received attention in the last decade are the survival and healthy development of children, and the social and economic well-being of women. In both areas, there has been concern about the relation between women's work and child welfare, but from two different points of view. One view…

Discusses public programs related to maternal employment including Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Reports on economic and social forces which discourage employment of mothers outside the home. Describes programs dealing with barriers to maternal employment. (RC)

Policy developments resulting from increased women's participation in the labor force are described for each of five European countries. The societal factors that led to the development of alternative policy models in these countries are analyzed. (Author/MC)

This book is a compilation of papers reporting and interpreting new research on women presented at the 1979 conference, "Women's Life Cycle and Public Policy," held at the University of Michigan. The papers focus on ways that women's lives may differ from men's, and on adaptations, both individual and social, that may encourage equal participation…

Reviews government and private sector programs which have aided in the care and education of preschool children. Given the projected increase in families headed by single working mothers, more funding and better planning should be directed toward such programs. (DM)

The first part of this paper describes three models of child development, each of which recommends an appropriate role to mothers for the proper nurturance of children. It is argued that the Child Survival model, which relegates a mother's role to provision of food and physical care, ignores aspects of psychological development. The…