Survey on Where Parents Look for and Find Information and How They Use Information When Selecting Child Care

NCT06386393 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: HHSP233201500048I-75P00120F370
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 6,804
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is contracting with NORC at the University of Chicago to collect nationally representative survey data to learn more about where parents look for and find information about Child Care and Early Education (CCEE); how parents assess the people, places, or things that may offer CCEE information; what types of CCEE information parents look for; and how parents use information to make CCEE selections. The study aims to gather information that may be used by Child Care Lead Agencies to inform their consumer education efforts. This study is part of the Consumer Education and Parental Choice in Early Care and Education (CEPC) project. The study will select a nationally representative sample from NORC's probability-based AmeriSpeak panel. The AmeriSpeak panel provides sample coverage of approximately 97 percent of the U.S. population. It currently contains 48,900 panel members age 13 and over residing in over 40,000 households. U.S. households are randomly selected with a known, non-zero probability from the NORC National Frame, and then recruited by mail, telephone, and by field interviewers face-to-face. NORC's in-person recruitment enhances representativeness for young adults, lower socio-economic households, non-internet households, and other households that are typically hard to reach for statistical surveys of the population. The survey respondents are AmeriSpeak panelists of at least 18 years of age who have indicated that they have a young child in the household (under the age of 6 years, but not in kindergarten). If a household has two or more panel members who reside in a household with a young child, one will be selected at random to complete the survey, with preference given to parents/legal guardians. Selected panelists will be asked questions to confirm eligibility for the survey, including that the household has at least one child under the age of 6 but not in kindergarten. The study is designed to include parents and legal guardians across race/ethnicity, education level, and gender from the full spectrum of geographic locations. To include families who may not have English as a preferred language, a Spanish version of the survey will be provided. The survey will include parents and legal guardians using many kinds of CCEE and those who use parental care only to see if there are differences in how information is used depending on care type. In addition, the study will include understudied subgroups, such as parents who speak a language other than English, to help inform consumer education efforts. The survey is intended to produce findings that are generalizable to the larger population of parents with children under the age of 6, but not in kindergarten.

Conditions

Searching for and Selecting Child Care in the US

Keywords

consumer education strategies; child care and early education search; surveys

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Primary sources of information about child care

  The parent survey will collect information about where parents may have gotten information from or tried to get information about CCEE.

  March-June 2024

• How parents assess the people, places, or things that may offer CCEE information

  The parent survey will collect information about how parents rate different sources of information including whether the source is current, has specific information they want to know, makes it easy to find information, and is trustworthy.

  March-June 2024

• What types of CCEE related information parents look for

  The parent survey will collect information on what child care and early education information parents have looked for within the last twelve months, what information they found most helpful, and information they have not found but think would be most helpful about child care options in their area.

  March-June 2024

• Information about the last time parents made a decision about CCEE and what information they tried to learn about at that time

  The parent survey will collect information about the main reason parents made their last CCEE decision, how many hours they spent looking for information to help make a decision, how many weeks they had to consider information before making a CCEE decision, whether they considered one or more providers when making a decision, the specific information they tried to learn when they made that decision, whether parents think they had enough information when they made that decision, whether the families had no options or had one or more options for child care, how well the decision met their family's needs, and whether as a result of the decision if they had to make changes to their work or family situation.

  March-June 2024

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Characteristics and experiences of the household and types of CCEE being used

  March-June 2024

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

AmeriSpeak panelists who indicated that they have a young child in the household and who are at least 18 years of age.

You may qualify if:

• Survey of AmeriSpeak panelists of at least 18 years of age who have indicated that they have a young child in the household (under the age of 6 years, but not in kindergarten).
• If a household has two or more panel members who reside in a household with a young child, one will be selected at random to complete the survey, with preference given to parents/legal guardians.
• Selected panelists will be asked questions to confirm eligibility for the survey, including that the household has at least one child under the age of 6 but not in kindergarten.

You may not qualify if:

• Being under the age of 18 and not having children under the age of 6 years that are not in kindergarten

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Opinion Research Center: lead
• Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation: collaborator
• Urban Institute: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

NORC at the University of Chicago

Chicago, Illinois, 60603, United States

Location

Study Officials

• Rupa Datta, PhD

  NORC at the University of Chicago

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: ECOLOGIC OR COMMUNITY
• Time Perspective: CROSS SECTIONAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Vice President and Distinguished Senior Fellow

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 23, 2024
• First Posted: April 26, 2024
• Study Start: March 28, 2024
• Primary Completion: May 13, 2024
• Study Completion: May 13, 2024
• Last Updated: November 27, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-11

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)