Researchers: Children Of Working Mums Have Better Skills Than Those Of Stay-At-Home Mums

New research from the University of Oxford has suggested that young children whose mothers are not working have lower capabilities in terms of talking, social skills, movement and everyday skills. The study, carried out in association with the London School of Economics, has been published in the journal Social Choice and Welfare.  It examined children between the ages of two and four years old, as well as over 800 mothers. The children were assessed under four skill sets; social skills, everyday skills, talking skills and movement skills. It found that spending more time in nurseries helps with better social and everyday skills while being cared for by grandparents means your child is more likely to have better talking and social skills. I know our granny is definitely more patient with my children! Having a mum with more years of education has a positive impact on all four capabilities while having an older mother has a negative effect on all the skills studied. (This seems to be because you are likely to have more children as you get older which means you are spread more thinly when it comes to one-on-one attention) Researchers also looked at what activities had the most beneficial effect on children's development. Songs, reading stories and visiting other families with children were top of the list for developing talking skills, while surprisingly, taking walks outdoors has a negative impact on movement skills - usually because a child is spending time in a buggy instead of running around. Children with more siblings have better skills in all four areas suggesting they are learning from their older brothers or sisters. Laurence Roope, of Oxford University, co-wrote the paper:

'It should give parents some reassurance that nurseries are not going to harm their children, and are likely to be beneficial. It seems that what is important is engaging in interactive activities. It could be there is a trade-off. Going out to work brings in more money for the family, which leads to more financial security and the ability to partake in more activities. But it might mean that the bond between parent and child is not as great, particularly if the parent is tired or stressed. More interactive activities between child and carer appear related to the development of both cognitive and non-cognitive capacities – and to child happiness.”

It suggests that stay at home parents may be too busy to spend as much time on developing everyday skills like a child dressing themselves or being able to speak up in a crowd. It is also worth noting that emotional development is not examined in this particular study and obviously environmental surroundings are not taken into consideration. Researchers looked at the effects of other activities on young children and found that reading and shopping made them happiest. (Us too) What do you think of this particular study? We are reporting the research but it is always worth remembering that every parent should do what they feel is best for their child and their situation! Send us your comments to Amanda.Cassidy@HerFamily.ie