A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Associations Between Early Childcare Environment and Different Aspects of Adulthood Sociability: The 32-Year Prospective Young Finns Study
Authors: Elli Oksman, Tom Rosenström, Kia Gluschkoff, Aino Saarinen, Mirka Hintsanen, Laura Pulkki-Råback, Jorma Viikari, Olli Tuomas Raitakari, Liisa Keltikangas-Järvinen
Publisher: FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
Publication year: 2019
Journal: Frontiers in Psychology
Journal name in source: FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
Journal acronym: FRONT PSYCHOL
Article number: ARTN 2060
Volume: 10
Number of pages: 13
ISSN: 1664-1078
eISSN: 1664-1078
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02060
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/42596793
Sociability is a widely studied trait that has been linked both with individual well-and ill-being. Although early childcare has been shown to affect social competence in children, its role in the development of different aspects of adulthood sociability is poorly understood. Using a longitudinal population-based sample (N = 464), this study investigated whether childcare arrangements at ages 3 or 6 are associated with self-reported adulthood sociability at ages 20 to 35 years. A total of five aspects of sociability were measured using three well-established personality inventories (EAS, NEO-FFI, and TCI). Multilevel modeling was applied to examine the association between early care and adulthood sociability, adjusting for several sources of random variation (between-individual variance, within-individual variance between measurement times, variance between used sociability indicators, and error variance that cannot be attributed to the previously mentioned) and potential confounders (disruptive behavior in childhood, parental socio-economic status, parent-child relationship quality, maternal age, and the number of children in the family). Based on our results, in comparison to home care, family daycare and center-based daycare at age 3 and center-based daycare at age 6 were associated with higher sociability later in life. The association was strongest for aspects of sociability that emphasize the willingness to be surrounded by other people and to be attached to them. In other words, characteristics of early care may contribute uniquely to the development of these aspects of sociability with effects that persist into adult life.
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