Development in early childhood is influenced by multiple contexts including home, school, daycare centers, and neighborhoods among many others. Although this might be the case, the home environment is considered one of the most influential. As you might be thinking, it is here where we encounter our first experiences, social and emotional, and our first relationships usually with our caregivers. As we have discussed previously, maternal and/or caregiver mental health is very important and influential in all developmental domains and social and emotional development is not the exception. In this section, we will discuss mental health, abuse, and neglect and the impact on social and emotional development in early childhood. We will continue our conversation with a discussion on access to healthcare and nutrition and family leave policy in the state of Oregon.

6.12.1 Medical Care and Nutrition Access

There is no question that having access to healthcare is crucial to healthy development at any stage of the lifespan. Having access to medical care can give parents and their children the resources necessary to support thriving social and emotional development and mental health. Previously, we discussed the importance of nutrition for healthy brain development. The brain is the basis for social and emotional development. And the brain develops differently based on the opportunities that children have to engage in active, safe, rich, and meaningful environments including social relationships and ideas (UNESCO). Research shows that having access to nutritious foods is associated with positive social behavior in early childhood (Liu & Raine, 2016). Furthermore, healthy eating is associated with better self-esteem, fewer emotional and peer problems (Ardvisson et al., 2017). Therefore, reducing malnutrition in infancy and early childhood promotes thriving social and emotional development.

6.12.2 Family Leave Policy

We have discussed the event of bringing an infant home, the importance of having access to health, nutrition, and a home environment where the infant can thrive. We have not yet discussed the interaction between employment and child development. In a perfect world, parents would be able to take parental leave to be with their infant and bond with them. Infancy is a crucial developmental period where attachment and bonding are established.

However, what happens if neither parent is able to take the time to establish healthy attachment and bond with their infant? According to the U.S. Department of Labor, out of the nation’s 83.8 million families 80.1 percent had at least one employed member in 2022 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023). Keep this number in mind as we discuss family leave policy.

Family leave policy changes from state to state. For the sake of simplicity, we will focus on Oregon’s family leave policies in this section. The Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) states that if your employer has 25 or more employees, you could qualify for protected leave (Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, n.d.). Therefore, a person is allowed by law to take protected time off to take care of themselves or family members. Under OFLA, a person can take up to 12 weeks of time off per year for multiple reasons including parental leave, a serious health condition, pregnancy disability leave, sick child leave, military family leave, and bereavement leave. Let’s dive a little further into parental leave, but first keep in mind that these 12 weeks are protected time off, but not necessarily paid.

According to the state of Oregon, parental leave can be granted to either parent for the birth, adoption, or foster placement of a child. However, if both parents work at the same company, they are not allowed to take parental leave at the same time unless one of the parents is sick. You might be wondering, what does parental leave have to do with social and emotional development. As you might be connecting the dots, to be able to bond and develop a healthy attachment with your parent(s) or caregiver, an infant must spend time with them.

If the infant is born into a low-income family, they are less likely to spend as much time with one parent than the other and in some cases with either parent. For example, many studies have found a negative association between maternal employment and child development, especially during the first year of life (Brooks-Gunn et al., 2010). However, maternal employment has also been linked to some advantages such as being able to buy better toys or the ability to afford better quality childcare. Therefore, maternal education provides both advantages and disadvantages related to child development. Now, let’s go back to the fact that protected leave does not mean paid leave. OFLA protects your absence and guarantees your job will be there after the 12 weeks have passed.

Recently, a new law has been passed in Oregon in which employees that qualify can be provided paid family leave for up to 12 weeks in a 12 month period. This became effective January 1, 2023.