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Using socio-cultural lens to explore adult–child interactions in Jamaica’s childcare settings

ABSTRACT Through observations and interviews and guided by Socio-cultural Theory, this article seeks to describe how dominant approaches to parenting shape child–caregiver interactions within childcare settings. The research question that guided this study is; how do commonly held cultural assumptions about gender, discipline and the purposes of early education shape the interactional practices of childcare workers in Jamaica’s childcare settings? Data were analysed deductively using Theoretic Thematic Analysis. My findings suggest that caregiver interactions with infants and toddlers in nursery settings replicate parent interactions with children within homes. These findings speak to many of the commonly held assumptions about caregivers’ knowledge of child development and also draw attention to the complexity of interactions and the plurality of factors which impact on them.