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Bromer, J. (2001). Helpers, mothers, and preachers: The multiple roles and discourses of family child care providers in African-American communities. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 16(3), 313-327.
Bromer explored the relationship between African American family child care providers and the parents who employ them.
The Study
- Family child care providers can and do often act as part of a family’s informal support system. They provide families with support, counseling, and friendship.
- The role of the professional is at times different in family child care settings.
- Adopting best practices in family child care must take into account cultural practices. Best practice is often based on a Caucasian model.
- African American professionals often use different relational styles in their interactions with clients. They tend to be direct, authoritative, and dynamic.
The Methods
- Direct interviews with seven African American providers and two parents from each site were conducted for this study. The providers and families tended to live in low-income neighborhoods.
- The interviews focused on:
- Provider’s motivation to work in child care,
- Provider’s relationship with parents, and
- Provider’s involvement in community
The Findings
- Providers offered to help parents and provided family support.
- Providers:
- Displayed professional knowledge,
- Had reciprocal relationships with parents,
- Viewed themselves as parent educators,
- Were objective and non-judgmental, and
- Established clear boundaries.
- Some African American providers were more direct in their advice-giving and had what could be described as a mother/daughter relationship with some of the women.
- There is a concern that training and culture may be in conflict in the African American family child care provider community.
- This study did not reflect how the advice was received by the parents of the children in care.
R2P Evaluation
The study was small and confined to seven providers. The generalizability of the results may be limited but they do offer insight into the relationship between African American family child care providers relationship and their client families.
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