Using data extracted from an international study, the 1988 IEA Preprimary Study Phase I, this study examined the number of hours a Nigerian child and an American child each spends with different caregiving adults on a typical day. The focus of the study was on the parents' commitment of time to child care. Results show that out of the 16 hours an average child is awake, the typical child in the Nigerian and American sample spends most of his or her time with the mother. The typical American child spends 10 hours and 42 minutes with the mother, while the average Nigerian father and the average American father each spends less than one hour with the child. In the American context, the teacher spends more time with the child than the father; in the Nigerian context, the nanny spends more time with the child than the father. The results support the argument that the traditional child care pattern should change, and recommend the development of family-responsive policies and actions. Recommended policies include employer-support activities and direct government intervention to facilitate the reorganization of child care in families so that mothers, whether working at home or in the public domain, will enjoy a more fulfilled life. (SM)