Joiner Flourishing Pathway Blog One - Introduction

Welcome to the Joiner Flourishing Blogs

Gosh—after all the reading I’d done over the years to educate myself on how best to parent, here I was, a mature-aged university student, encountering new research that had never appeared in the state libraries. It not only detailed the principles of nurturing I had so keenly sought, but also raised serious concerns about the use of childcare for children under the age of three.

What? In a society so focused on encouraging women to "get back to work, earn, and spend" soon after the birth of their babies, this did not align with emerging evidence suggesting such early separation could be detrimental to infants. I found myself asking: How do we balance the needs of our youngest children while also honouring the needs of women to live full, purposeful lives?

This seemingly intractable dilemma sparked a journey that ultimately led me to undertake a PhD. I began by exploring the scientific evidence around optimal nurturing. I then examined the research raising legitimate concerns about early childcare—investigating how it became the dominant solution to women’s autonomy. At the same time, I considered the growing economic pressures on families and the increasing trend to place infants into care at ever-younger ages.

Eventually, I brought this inquiry into the ethical arena—seeking a principled and compassionate way through what remains, for many families, a real and pressing dilemma.

A Personal and Professional Journey

I come to this topic as a researcher, a social worker, a parent—and now a grandparent. This blog is the culmination of many years of lived and work experience, study, and deep ethical reflection.

At the heart of my cross-disciplinary doctorate—combining infant neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, and ethics—was a troubling insight:

Infants under three, spending long days in childcare, consistently show high stress levels.

We know that sustained high stress is damaging to the adult brain. The implications for the developing brain are even more serious. And yet, while researchers were sounding the alarm, this evidence wasn't reaching parents or appearing in the media.

The Silence and the Societal Dilemma

Instead, the media focused on economic participation. Women were being encouraged—often expected—to return to work quickly. Meanwhile, parents were leaving hospital with their newborns having received little to no guidance about nurturing in those critical early years.

The more I researched infant neuroscience the more troubling data was revealed, which could shed light onto why mental health statistics of young people are declining:

·       One in four young people aged 16–24 in Australia has a mental disorder (Australian Government, 2007).

·       Up to 20% of children and adolescents globally suffer from a disabling mental illness (Belfer, 2008).

·       Around one in four five-year-olds in Australia is developmentally vulnerable or at risk, particularly in emotional and social domains (AEDC, 2015).

These figures raise a vital question: What is driving these outcomes—and what can we do to change them?

Asking the Hard Questions

My research took me into some of the foundational ideas shaping our modern parenting culture. Ideas from liberalism, autonomy, feminism, the history of motherhood, and dominant economic ideologies all intersect with how we make decisions about infant care.

I also began asking these four critical questions:

1. Are we ignoring the evidence about long-term harms associated with early childcare?

2. Why aren’t parents given nurturing guidance before their child is even born—guidance that could positively shape two decades of parenting?

3. Why don’t we honour the deep desire many women have to spend extended time nurturing their infants during these once-in-a-lifetime early years?

4. Why are governments offering so little support to families, when today’s infants will shape tomorrow’s society?

These questions don’t have simple answers. But they are essential if we are serious about supporting children’s wellbeing—and that of their families.

What to Expect in This Blog Series

Each of the next 17 posts will cover a key insight or principle from my research. Topics will include:

• Infant brain development and stress

• The neuroscience of attachment

• Ethical dilemmas around care

• Influential historical views of motherhood and wellbeing

• How modern ideologies influence parenting decisions

• What flourishing looks like for babies—and for parents

• What governments need to do to better support families and their wellbeing

I’ll also include references and resources for those who want to go deeper, and I welcome your feedback and reflections along the way.

Join Me on the Pathway to Flourishing

Whether you're a parent, grandparent, educator, policymaker, or simply someone who cares about the wellbeing of children—thank you for being here. Thank you for your curiosity and courage to ask deeper questions.

I believe nurturing and wellbeing research belongs in the mainstream, not just in academic journals. And this blog is my small way of bridging that gap.

I’m so glad you’re joining me at the start of this journey.

Bibliography

Australian Government 2007, Australian social trends, Australian Bureau of Statistics, <http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/0/0485BB5550FE5799CA25732C00207C77?opendocument>.

Belfer, ML 2008, 'Child and adolescent mental disorders: the magnitude of the problem across the globe', The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, vol. 49, no. 3, pp. 226-236.

Commonwealth of Australia. National Report 2015, Australian Early Development Census, <http://www.aedc.gov.au/communities/findings-from-the-aedc>.