Child abuse potential and work satisfaction in day-care employees

The Child Abuse Potential (CAP) Inventory and a Work Satisfaction Questionnaire were administered to 228 day-care employees at 40 centers to investigate the relationship between potential for child abuse and degree of job satisfaction. In addition, the ability of the CAP abuse scale to distinguish between groups of day-care employees thought to differ in the quality of child care provided was studied. Small, albeit significant, inverse correlations were observed between abuse scores and two job satisfaction items. As clarity of job expectations and as overall job satisfaction increased, abuse scores decreased. Although abuse scores for all day-care employees were not significantly different from norm scores, significantly lower scores were found for employees from "superior" day-care centers and for employees rated "high" by center directors. Abuse scores for employees rated "high" were also significantly below scores for employees rated "low." While these data indicate only limited relationships between child abuse and job satisfaction, the findings suggest the CAP abuse scale can distinguish some subgroups of day-care employees thought to differ in quality of child care provided.