Language development and its relation to social behavior and family and school environments: a systematic review

To conduct a systematic review of the literature on the relationship between language development, social behavior, and family and school environments in children aged 4 to 6 years.

Papers published between March 2009 and March 2014 were searched in electronic databases. The first phase of the study consisted in preparing the guiding question. Subsequently, survey and selection of studies were conducted. To this end, descriptors were defined by groups of themes.

The following types of publications were included in the search: complete scientific articles available in full and freely and original research papers or literature reviews published in the past five years covering the 4 to 6-year age range.

The analysis of the papers was conducted through critical reading and selection of the results that responded to the guiding question.

Fourteen articles were selected. Most of the studies used at least one standardized instrument. Research indicates that the family environment is related to language development, mainly regarding socioeconomic status and parental education; number of adults who live with the child; parental health; language motivation; and interaction between parents and children. Only one article showed association between quality of the school environment and language development, and none showed evidence of an association between social behavior and language development.

Most of the studies analyzed focus on the relationship between family environment and language development. Very few studies with this approach are available in the specific literature.