SOURCE: Adapted from Brayfield et al., 1993. Reprinted with permission.

face much more limited child care options than higher-income families. Furthermore, prospects that low-income families' reliance on child care may effectively be mandated by federal and state welfare reform initiatives have raised concerns regarding parents' ability to place their children in care arrangements that they feel assured are safe, nurturing, and supportive of their children's growth and development while they strive to meet work requirements.

What is known about the child care preferences of low-income families? Do they define “good” child care differently from middle- and upper-income families? What influences impinge on the capacity of low-income families to match their preferences with their actual child care arrangements, and do they differ from those that affect other families? Is there evidence that the child care choices of low-income families are constrained? These questions were addressed by several of the presentations at the workshops.