According to new research published in The Lancet, children experience less pressure and are less depressed if they go to daycare before the age of four. "Children in daycare may learn to better deal with their emotions, cooperate and resolve conflicts," ESSB researcher Hanan El Marroun told NOS.
Study in five European countries
The study was conducted in the Netherlands, Denmark, Great Britain, Spain and France. For the study, more than 80,000 children were followed long-term. Researchers looked at children up to and including 13 years old. El Marroun tells the NOS that previous studies varied considerably. That is why they decided to conduct a large-scale European study. They now dare to say with certainty that the effect of childcare is beneficial.
Read the full article at NOS (in Dutch)
Both prof.dr. Hanan El Marroun and prof.dr. Pauline Jansen from Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences contributed to the research.
- Researcher
- Researcher
- More information
Contact: Marjolein Kooistra, communication advisor ESSB, kooistra@essb.eur.nl