An Analysis of Kin‐Provided Child Care in the Context of Intrafamily Exchanges

Little is known about why parents choose kin‐provided child care and less is known about how kin‐provided child care is related to other forms of in‐kind support from relatives close‐at‐hand. Previous models of the choice of kin‐provided child care assumed that the presence of other forms of in‐kind support from relatives nearby was inconsequential to estimating effects of economic and demographic factors on the decision to use kin‐provided child care. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of the Class of 1972, this study shows that this assumption is incorrect because use of kin‐provided child care and intrafamily in‐kind resource exchanges are interrelated. When the association between use of kin‐provided child care and the presence of other family in‐kind exchanges is ignored, the study shows that estimated effects for income, the price of child care, and maternal characteristics are underestimated. The findings provide a better understanding of why parents choose kin‐provided child care by confirming that this decision is a part of a larger set of parental decisions about involvement in resource exchanges within extended families. My findings support recent child care bills aiming to increase parental choice of child care provider, broaden the definition of a provider to include non‐coresident relatives, and expand price subsidies for kin‐provided child care.