Researchers believe babies benefit from having a close relationship with more than one person. No parent should think she or he must be with a baby all day every day. This is hard on you and may not be best for your baby. My Baby Called the Day Care Teacher Mama or Papa Mothers who use full-time day care sometimes worry that their baby will feel more love for the child care provider. When your baby calls another woman mama or another man papa, you may feel hurt, jealous, guilty or just confused.
Research shows that infants in day care do form strong bonds of love with their caregivers.
But research also shows that caregivers do not replace the parent. Some of the research was done in communal towns in Israel, where the baby lives and sleeps in a special infant house with trained caregivers, and only sees the parents for about three hours each evening. Even in this extreme case, babies are still more strongly attached to their parents. By the way, this is true for babies who are adopted at a young age, too. She or he helps you raise your baby well, but never replaces you.