House of Commons Private
Members' Business, Child Care,
Mr. Garry Breitkreuz
parl.gc.ca, 7-Oct-96
(Canada) |
Another key point I would like to make
in my speech today is to inform members of the House about the negative
effects that institutionalized day care or, as my motion says, non-parental
day care, has on the lives and future development of children. What effect
does separating a baby from its mother for long periods of time have on the
future development of the child? The answer to this question is truly
alarming and proves beyond any doubt that
institutionalized day care is a recipe for disaster.
Dr. Mark Genuis, executive director of the
National Foundation of Family Research and Education, said:
Research collected over the last 40 years on non-parental care
demonstrates clearly that prior to five years of age, regular separation
from parents results in an unmistakably negative effect on emotion and
behavioural development in children, as well as a hindering effect on the
security of the children's bonds to their parents. Further studies have
linked children's insecure bonding with parents to clinical, emotional and
behavioural difficulties, including youth crime.
Dr. Genuis continued:
The research demonstrates definite risks to the emotional health and
behavioural adjustment of children when they are separated from their
parents on a regular basis, most noticeably for periods of 20 or more
hours per week. ...In fact, the results indicate a...negative effect
(in cognitive skills) for those children raised in regular non-parental care of
more than 20 hours per week. There is also no scientific support for the
claim that high quality day care is an acceptable substitute for parental
care
Category = Behavior, Development
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