Nonstandard Work Schedules and Developmentally Generative Parenting Practices: An Application of Propensity Score Techniques

Data from the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care (Phase I) and propensity score techniques were used to determine whether working full time in a nonstandard schedule job during the child's first year predicted parenting practices over 3 years. Results indicated that women who worked full time in a nonstandard schedule job during the first year had poorer maternal sensitivity at 24 and 36 months. Modest differences in Home Observation for the Measurement of the Environment scores were also observed at 36 months. The results provide strong evidence that full-time maternal employment in nonstandard schedule jobs may interfere with the creation and maintenance of developmentally generative parenting practices.