Latchkey Parenting Data

October 14, 2024 1:00 PM

I'm looking for data (not info on the impacts or causes) on the prevalence of US or even western society young children (grade school) being more supervised and having less ability to be independent than over time. Looking to see if there's some data (even if it's survey data) .
posted by sandmanwv to Society & Culture (7 answers total)

Are you looking for data that shows trends over time or just the current state of things?
posted by brookeb at 1:19 PM on October 14

There is this “room to roam” map, which is data from only one family, but still might be useful.
posted by Ollie at 1:39 PM on October 14 [1 favorite]

I would look for increases in formal after-school care programs and the ages of kids in them - that might be easier to find.
posted by warriorqueen at 2:36 PM on October 14

A keyword of interest might be children’s independent mobility.
posted by oceano at 6:14 PM on October 14

On the childcare theme but in the UK, you might find this 2005 paper interesting: Childcare and Mothers’ Employment: Approaching the Millennium, particularly in conjunction with 2023 data on use of informal and formal childcare.
posted by plonkee at 5:40 AM on October 15

As a case study, consider the case of the Vancouver dad who was prohibited from having his children ride the bus to school independently by the local child welfare agency. It took him 3 years and $70,000 to prove that the government agency did not have the extra judicial right to restrict parents from leaving children under age 10 without a sitter any time/anywhere, even going to school.
posted by shock muppet at 12:01 PM on October 15

Slate.com did a survey about 10 years ago that might be helpful: The Shortening Leash
posted by paper scissors sock at 5:25 PM on October 15