| Summary: | This study focused on two factors, auspice and job
satisfaction, which have been shown to impact on the quality of
child care programs. However, while research has indicated that
auspice, job satisfaction, and program quality are intertwined,
there is a lack of research which explores these factors
qualitatively. There is also a dearth of research which has
considered auspice from the caregivers' perspectives. Hence, the
purpose of this study was to explore the meaning that caregivers
give to auspice in their work in nonprofit and for-profit child
care centers. As well, this study sought to examine the
relationship between auspice and job satisfaction from the
caregiver's point of view, paying close attention to differences
in job satisfaction that existed between staff employed in
nonprofit centers and staff who worked in private or for-profit
centers.
A series of qualitative, in-depth interviews were conducted
with eight child care workers from the Vancouver Metropolitan
area. Four of the participants were employed in or owned private
centers and four of the participants worked in nonprofit centers.
Positive and negative perceptions of both nonprofit and private
auspice emerged. In particular, the nonprofit participants
believed that child care should be operated as a service and not
a business. They perceived that the motive to make a profit in
child care lead for-profit centers to sacrifice quality in order
to cut costs and maximize profits. On the other hand, the for-
profit participants perceived that their centers provided high quality care and were dedicated to putting the needs of children
and staff first.
In general, the participants'' perceptions of factors that
influenced their job satisfaction were similar across auspices.
The nature of child care work and supportive relationships with
co-workers were factors which positively influenced job
satisfaction while the perceived lack of status in the eyes of
society negatively affected satisfaction. Differences in job
satisfaction according to auspice were found on several factors,
such as government policies and a perceived lack of enough time
to accomplish job duties.
|
|---|
