Third, this study did not consider the quality
of childcare; future research should include quality in order to better
understand the impact of patterns of care children experience up to
the age when they start in school. To sum up, the current study
examined childcare usage patterns with a novel perspective and helped
to explain some of the conflicting results found in the childcare
literature. The current results also helped to understand that it is
generally not the types of childcare used over time but factors, such as
high family SES and maternal stimulation, within each type or
trajectory that make the most contribution to child development at 51
months.