White Paper on fertility and child development in the works as Singapore pushes to reverse birth rate decline
COGNITIVE GAINS, BEHAVIOURAL RISKS
Research presented at the conference found that better workplace policies, shifting gender norms and stronger community support are needed to improve children’s development outcomes and Singapore’s fertility outlook.
One study found that children placed in non-parental care – such as infant care centres or with grandparents – in their first 18 months showed stronger cognitive development between the ages of three and six. But they also faced a higher risk of behavioural problems.
The reason, said Professor Jean Yeung, who heads the Population Association of Singapore, is that extended non-parental care raises parental stress, which in turn affects parenting quality. For example, primary caregivers, usually mothers, were more likely to use punitive methods of discipline as a result.
More than half the children in non-parental care were there for more than 50 hours a week.
“The context is these mothers have to leave their babies for very long hours … I think that’s creating a lot of anxiety and stress among women,” said Prof Yeung, who is also with NUS Medicine’s paediatrics department.
She stressed the importance of flexible work arrangements for mothers of young children, and said workplace-based infant care could help mothers feel more at ease.
“Extended work hours for mothers with very young children, in this case under 18 months old, is not conducive to parenting and to child development.”
