Skip to main content

The Latchkey Child

A New Psychosocial Challenge in Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics

  • Chapter
Developmental-Behavioral Disorders
  • 122 Accesses

Abstract

The meteoric rate at which mothers have entered the work force during the past decade has generated major concerns for psychologists, social workers, pediatricians, and child advocates in general. Catapulted into the limelight of the generic category of developmental-behavioral problems are the issues concerning preschool and school-age children requiring alternative day-care arrangements. Of particular interest within this unique pediatric population are a subgroup of children, for whom adult supervision cannot be provided during varying periods of the school day. These are the children (from preschoolers to adolescents), categorized as latchkey children (i.e., children in self-care), who require special attention and consideration due to the potential psychosocial complications that may occur in their situation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • American Academy of Pediatrics, 1984, Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health: The mother working outside the home, Pediatrics 73:874–875.

    Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., and Steinberg, L., 1978, The effects of daycare: A critical review, Child Dev. 49:929–949.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brazelton, T.B., 1986, Issues for working parents, Am. J. Orthopsychiatry 56:14–25.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Campbell, L.P., and Flake, A.E., 1985, Latchkey children—What is the answer? The Clearing House 58:381–383.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, D., 1985, The crises in school-age child care: What you should know—What can you do? PTA Today 10:4–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Child Care Action News, 1986, Child Care Action Campaign, 3:5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, R.W., 1987, Less work for mother? Invention and Technology 2:57–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, D.E., 1985, Taking care of the kids: The corporate role in providing child care, PTA Today 10:11–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Galambos, N.L., and Garbarino, J., 1983, Identifying the missing links in the study of latchkey children, Children Today Jul-Aug:2-4, 40-41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gamble, T.J., and Zigler, E., 1986, Effects of infant day care: Another look at the evidence, Am. J. Orthopsychiatry 56:26–42.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gelman, D., Greenberg, N. F., Coppola, V., et al. , 1985, Playing both mother and father, Newsweek Jul 15:41–50.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gold, D., and Andres, D., 1978, Developmental comparisons between ten-year-old children with employed and nonemployed mothers, Child Dev. 49:75–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grollman, E. A., and Sweder, G. L., 1986, Mom and dad—Phone home, Working Woman Jan: 108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guerney, L., and Moore, L., 1983, PhoneFriend: A prevention-oriented service for latchkey children, Children Today Jul-Aug:5-10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jordan, A.F., 1986, The unresolved child care dilemma: Care for the acutely ill child, Rev. Inf. Dis. 8:626–630.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kieffer, E., 1981, The latchkey kids—How are they doing? Family Circle Feb:28-35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Landers, S., 1986, Latchkey kids, The American Psychological Association Monitor 17:1, 6–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Long, T. J., and Long, L., 1983, The Handbook for Latchkey Children and Their Parents, Arbor House, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Long, T. J., and Long, L., 1982, Latchkey children: The child’s view of self care, U.S. Educational Resources Information Center, ERIC Document ED 214 666.

    Google Scholar 

  • McClellan, M. A., 1984, On their own: Latchkey children, Pediatric Nursing May/Jun:198-202.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCurdy, J., 1985, Schools respond to latchkey children, The School Administrator Mar: 16-18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrill, D., 1984, After-school orphans, Christianity Today Aug:25-29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrow, J., 1985, Self care, Young Children Jul:8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, L., 1984, The “safe at home” game. Training comprehensive prevention skills in latchkey children, Behavior Modification 8:474–495.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rowland, B.H., Robinson, B.E., and Coleman, M., 1986, A survey of parent’s perceptions regarding latchkey children, Pediatric Nursing 12:278–283.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scherer, M., 1982, The loneliness of the latchkey child, Instructor May:39-41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Seligson, M., 1986, When school’s out—Where do the kids go? Child Care Action News 3:1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L., 1986, Latchkey children and susceptibility to peer pressure: An ecological analysis, Dev. Psychol. 22:433–439.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stroman, S.H., and Duff, E., 1982, The latchkey child: Whose responsibility? Childhood Education 59:76–79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strother, D.B., 1986, Latchkey children: The fastest-growing special interest group in the schools, J. Sch. Health 56:13–16.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wellborn, S. N., 1981, When school kids come home to an empty house, U.S. News and Word Report Sept:42, 47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Woods, M.B., 1972, The unsupervised child of the working mother, Dev. Psychol. 6:14–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zambrana, R.E., Hurst, M., and Hite, R.L., 1979, The working mother in contemporary perspective: A review of the literature, Pediatrics 64:862–870.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1988 Plenum Publishing Corporation

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Gottlieb, M.I. (1988). The Latchkey Child. In: Gottlieb, M.I., Williams, J.E. (eds) Developmental-Behavioral Disorders. Critical Issues in Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0939-0_11

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0939-0_11

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-8255-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-0939-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics