HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Alkon, A. Articles by Boyce, W T. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Alkon, A. Articles by Boyce, W T.

Injuries in child care centers: gender-environment interactions

¹ University of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing, Department of Family Health Care Nursing, Room N411-Y Box 0606, San Francisco, CA 94143–0606, USA
² University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health, Berkeley, California
³ University of California, San Francisco, California
⁴ Center for the Advancement of Health, Washington, DC
⁵ Menlo Park, California
⁶ University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health, Division of Health and Medical Sciences, Berkeley, California

Correspondence to:
Dr Alkon
(email: abbeyalk{at}uclink4.berkeley.edu)

Objectives—To examine child characteristics (age, gender) and child care center environments (socioemotional quality, physical safety) that jointly predict injuries for preschool children.

Methods—A two year prospective study of 360 preschool children, ages 2–6 years, was conducted in four urban child care centers. Composite scores for center quality and physical safety were derived from on-site observations, and injury rates were based on teacher reports. Poisson regression analyses examined age, gender, center quality, center safety, and the interactions of gender with quality and safety as predictors of injury incidence over one child year.

Results—Age was significantly associated with injury rates, with younger children sustaining higher rates. An interaction between gender and center quality also significantly predicted injury incidence: girls in low quality centers experienced more injuries, while girls in high quality centers sustained fewer injuries than their male peers. Finally, an interaction between gender and center safety showed that girls in high safety centers sustained more injuries than boys, while girls in low safety centers sustained fewer injuries.

Conclusions—Injuries occur even in relatively safe environments, suggesting that in child care settings, the socioemotional context may contribute, along with physical safety, to the incidence of injury events. Further, gender specific differences in susceptibility to environmental influences may also affect children's vulnerability and risks of injuries. The prevention of injuries among preschool children may thus require attention to and modifications of both the physical and socioemotional environments of child care.

Keywords: gender; environment; child care centers

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. Bishai, J. L. Trevitt, Y. Zhang, L. B. McKenzie, T. Leventhal, A. C. Gielen, and B. Guyer Risk Factors for Unintentional Injuries in Children: Are Grandparents Protective? Pediatrics, November 1, 2008; 122(5): e980 - e987. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. L. Chadwick, G. Bertocci, E. Castillo, L. Frasier, E. Guenther, K. Hansen, B. Herman, and H. F. Krous Annual Risk of Death Resulting From Short Falls Among Young Children: Less Than 1 in 1 Million Pediatrics, June 1, 2008; 121(6): 1213 - 1224. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. C. Schwebel, C. M. Brezausek, and J. Belsky Does Time Spent in Child Care Influence Risk for Unintentional Injury? J. Pediatr. Psychol., March 1, 2006; 31(2): 184 - 193. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]