Researchers will study how families pay for daycare

Parents across the United States will participate in a new research effort designed to clarify the costs and hurdles of finding child care. The study aims to provide specific data on how different income levels and family structures affect access to affordable options. This work seeks to move policy debates from general concepts to measurable outcomes for households.

Caitlyn Collins, an associate professor of sociology at Washington University in St. Louis, is co-leading the project. She is working alongside Chloe Gibbs, a senior economist at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. The initiative is backed by a grant from Pivotal, a consortium founded by Melinda French Gates to support social progress for women and young people.

The team will rely on in-depth interviews and national surveys to gather data. They intend to analyze how geography and labor policies influence a parent's ability to choose care. Specific policy tools under review include workplace flexibility rules, childcare vouchers, subsidies, and direct public provision of daycare slots. The researchers want to determine which interventions most effectively allow parents to balance work and care preferences.

The project will run for two years. Its primary output will be evidence on which market improvements work for different groups of families. This data is intended to inform legislative discussions and help scale successful solutions across the country.