Toddlers’ Cortisol Levels in Childcare and at Home

Abstract

Research Findings: Measuring toddlers’ cortisol levels both in childcare and athome and their relation to child- and childcare-related factors may help toidentify stress-inducing childcare practices and children who are more vul-nerable to stress in childcare. Accordingly, toddlers’ (n = 320, 51.2% female,mean age = 26.8 months) cortisol levels in childcare and at home and theirrelation to childcare quality and child- and family-related factors were inves-tigated using linear mixed model analyses. Mid-morning to mid-afternooncortisol levels increased in childcare and decreased at home. Younger chil-dren had higher overall cortisol levels. Children attending groups witha higher caregiver – child ratio had slightly higher cortisol levels in childcareand slightly lower cortisol levels at home. Toddlers attending disorganizedgroups were considerably more stressed in childcare. Practice or Policy: Thepresent study underlines the importance of sufficient caregiver availabilityand stable routines in toddler classrooms