“IF WE WERE VALUED MORE”: A STUDY OF CHILDCARE PROVIDERS IN RURAL SOUTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA
Open Access
- Author:
- Hagedorn, Annelise Dejong
- Graduate Program:
- Rural Sociology
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- November 15, 2018
- Committee Members:
- Leif Jensen, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor
Leif Jensen, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Ann Tickamyer, Committee Member
Leland Glenna, Committee Member
Sarah Damaske, Outside Member - Keywords:
- Childcare
Rural
Gendered Employment
Work - Abstract:
- This research examines the experiences of childcare providers in rural southwest Pennsylvania. Through the intersection of research on gendered employment, professionalization of the workforce, and the importance of the rural context, this work seeks to understand how childcare providers define their work, how they enter, maintain, and view their progress in the field of childcare, and how they envision their futures. This research occurred in two counties in rural southwest Pennsylvania that were purposefully selected across a number of demographic, socioeconomic, and childcare-specific measures. Twenty-six in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with childcare providers across the two counties between the months of July and December 2017. These interviews were supplemented with nine semi-structured interviews with members of professional organizations and state agencies associated with work in the field of early care and education. Findings suggest that childcare work is comprised of numerous tasks, and providers take on different statuses both within the hours of hands-on care, and well outside of formal work hours. Providers situate their work within gendered narratives of family priorities, and may select this career to manage work and family responsibilities. Their work provides a critical service to their rural communities, and they struggle to balance their interests in serving the families of the community with their priorities for their own families. Childcare providers also face constraints when seeking both the approval of formal channels for professional development and measures of quality. Instead, some construct alternative means for evaluating their current work and future plans.