The Quantity and Quality of Child Care Provision in Australian Households

Charlene M. Kalenkoski, Ohio University
Gigi Foster, University of South Australia

Using data from the 1992 and 1997 Australian Time Use Surveys, we explore the patterns of child care time spent by parents in Australia and estimate censored regression models of the quantity and quality of the time that parents spend in child care and the time parents spend in market work. Our results show that mothers and fathers differ remarkably in the determinants and levels of the quality of time they spend with children. We also find that how the quality of time spent caring for children is conceptualized affects the conclusions we draw about the determinants of parental child care time.