Objective: This study examined the relationship between child care teachers'job satisfaction, teacher-parent partnership, and teacher- child interaction in order to improve the quality of child care. Methods: Self-report questionnaires were used on 321 child care teachers and data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and Structural Equation Modeling Analysis. Results: First, significant correlations existed among variables except the relationship between payment/promotion and other variables. The results showed that child care teachers'job satisfaction had a significant and direct influence on teacher-child interaction, and teachers' job satisfaction was partially mediated by teacher-parent partnership on teacher-child interaction. Conclusion/Implications: The findings confirm that teachers' job satisfaction and teacher-parent partnership are preceding factors for positive teacher-child interaction. Significant attention should be paid to child care teachers'psychological satisfaction and teacher-parent relationships to promote the quality of child care and the positive interaction between teachers and children.

Objective: The purpose this study is to explore the relationship between grandmothers and mothers when grandmothers take care of their grandchildren, and to understand the particular meaning of it. Methods: The Participants were 5 grandmothers who have supported or have experience in caring for their grandchildren, and their daughters(5 working mothers) who have entrusted their children to them. In-depth interviews were conducted and analysed by the phenomenological qualitative research method. Results: Seventeen sub-constructs and 5 constructs resulted in: (1) Motivation of grandmothers and mothers for taking care of grandchildren. (2) Pressure of grandmothers and satisfaction of mothers for the support. (3) Grandmothers stepping back and saying 'Not my child' and mothers saying 'It's my child' and thinking their influence is big. (4) Consistent sacrifice of grandmothers and mothers who cannot do the same. (5) Grandmothers feeling empty after caring for their grandchildren and mothers realizing their efforts. Conclusion/Implications: This study attempted to understand the relationship between grandmothers and mothers when grandmothers take care of their grandchildren from multi-perspectives. Through the findings, the need for developing healthy relationships and a caring environment for grandmothers and their grandchildren is stressed.

Objective: This study investigated how early childhood teachers'creativity and teaching flow was associated with their job satisfaction and examined the mediating effect of teaching flow. Methods: Participants were 222 early childhood teachers in Seoul. Descriptive statistics for all study variables were computed. To examine the hypothesized model and the alternative model structural equation modeling (SEM) was used. Results: The results revealed that early childhood teachers'creativity and teaching flow were positively associated with their job satisfaction. Early childhood teachers'creativity had an influence on their teaching flow, however, it didn't have a direct affect on their job satisfaction. Early childhood teachers' teaching flow had an affect on their job satisfaction. Additionally, early childhood teachers'teaching flow mediated the effects of teachers' creativity on their job satisfaction. Conclusion/Implications: In conclusion, early childhood teachers'teaching flow was a key predictor in the relationship between teachers' creativity and job satisfaction. This study provides guidelines for interventions aimed at increasing the job satisfaction of early childhood teachers.

Objective: This study investigated the effects of discussion using personality picture books on young children's self-regulation ability and pro-social behaviors. Methods: Participants consisted of thirty-nine 5-year-old children who were going to a kindergarten in Gwangju metropolitan city. Nineteen children belonged to the experimental group and twenty children to the comparative group. The experimental group carried out discussion using personality picture books, and the comparative group carried out conversation activities. Results: The results of this study demonstrated that the experimental group scored higher than the comparative group in self-regulation ability and pro-social behaviors. That is to say, the experimental group scored higher than the comparative group in three sub factors of self-regulation ability and seven sub factors of pro-social behaviors. Conclusion/Implications: It is significant that this study provides useful information about discussion using personality picture books with young children that can be used in the early childhood field.

Objective: This purpose of this study was to analyze articles and research trends in children's free-choice activities in major domestic journals published from 1998 to 2017. Methods: Registered research papers in academic journals from 1998 to 2017 for the National Research Foundation of Korea were analyzed in terms of trends in their annual submission numbers, research subject, research type, research area. and research theme. Results: The quantity of the studies has more than doubled since 2010 but has decreased in recent years. Studies about free-choice activities for young children held the majority of research subjects while physical subjects such as literature, class, and education plans were in the minority. Furthermore, qualitative research, fusion qualitative, and survey were the most common research types while literature review studies were less common. Most research themes were studies about contemplation, actual conditions and perception, factor analysis, and programs of free-choice activities for young children. Conclusion/Implications: Considering the results of this study, further studies on free-choice activities for young children must be conducted.

Objective: The goals of this research were (1)to examine the relationship among parental conflict, mothers' depression and preschoolers' sleep problems, and (2) to examine the mediating effects of mothers' depression between marital conflict and preschoolers' sleep problems. Methods: The participants were 1,639 mothers with preschoolers taken from the 5th year Korean Children Panel. Date were analyzed using descriptive statistics, partial correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. Results: The results were as follows: First, preschoolers' sleep problems were positively related to marital conflicts. Second, preschoolers' sleep problems were positively related to mothers' depression. Third, marital conflict was positively related to mothers' depression. Lastly, mothers' depression fully mediated the relationship between marital conflict and preschoolers' sleep problems. That is, marital conflict had an effect on preschoolers' sleep problem, only through mothers' depression. Conclusion/Implications: Based on the results, intervention programs should be developed to prevent preschoolers' sleep problems such as marital relationship improvement programs and mothers' depression improvement programs.

Objective: This study examined the mediating roles of preschoolers' self-regulation in the relationship between maternal parenting behaviors and preschoolers' excessive immersion in smartphones. Methods: A total of 268 mothers of preschoolers responded to questionnaires on three research variables. Data were analyzed by correlation analyses and regression analyses. Results: First, maternal warmth/encouragement was negatively related to preschoolers' excessive immersion in smartphones, while maternal overprotectiveness/permission and rejection/neglect were positively related to preschoolers' excessive immersion in smartphones. Second, maternal warmth/encouragement and limit setting were positively linked to preschoolers' self-regulation, but maternal overprotectiveness/permission and rejection/neglect were negatively linked to preschoolers' self-regulation. Third, preschoolers' self-regulation was negatively associated with their excessive immersion in smartphones. Finally, preschoolers' self-regulation fully mediated the relationship between maternal warmth/encouragement and preschoolers' excessive immersion in smartphones, and preschoolers' self-regulation partially mediated the relationship between maternal overprotectiveness/permission, rejection/neglect and preschoolers' excessive immersion in smartphones. Conclusion/Implications: The results of this study suggest that positive maternal parenting behaviors and preschoolers' effective self-regulation are important in order to decrease preschoolers' smartphone overuse. These findings provide empirical evidence to develop programs for prevention and intervention of preschoolers' smartphone addiction.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of the childcare environment on childcare efficacy of childcare teachers. Methods: The participants in the study were 274 childcare teachers working at childcare centers. The childcare environment was divided into physical environment and the work support environment. Results: The results of this study are as follows. First, there was a significant difference in childcare efficacy depending on the age and career of the childcare teacher. Second, the childcare environment of the childcare center showed a static correlation with the childcare efficacy of the childcare teacher in both the physical environment and the work support environment. Third, the physical environment of the day care center had an affect on child care efficacy. Among the subfactors, furniture for routine care, play and learning had a significant impact. Fourth, the work support environment of the childcare center had an affect on childcare efficacy of the childcare teacher. Among the subfactors, staff interaction and cooperation, and opportunities for professional growth had a significant impact. Conclusion/Implications: In order to enhance childcare efficacy of childcare teachers, a high quality childcare environment should be established.