This paper examines child care quality and the effects of in-home and out-of-home child care on children's quality of life, focusing on the results of a 1992 study of child care in northern and central Italy. The study surveyed the parents of 2,158 toddlers cared for exclusively in the home and 2,346 toddlers attending public day care centers. It found similar percentages of intact families and families in which both parents worked among both groups, and that choice of care was related to the mother's employment and, when she is employed, to the socioeconomic status of her job. Mothers in higher paid and higher prestige positions were more likely to use paid caregivers and day care facilities than lower paid mothers, who relied more on relatives for help in caring for their children. The study also found that children in day care centers tended to have more social interactions with peers, spend less time watching television, and spend more time with their fathers than children who were cared for by their mothers or other caregivers. (Contains 18 references.) (MDM)