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Sources of child vocabulary competence: a multivariate model
M H Bornstein1, M O Haynes, K M Painter
1Laboratory of Comparative Ethology, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-2030, USA. Marc_H_Bornstein@nih.gov
Journal of Child Language
|October 15, 1998
Summary
Maternal factors like vocabulary and attitudes, along with child social competence and gender, significantly impact child vocabulary development. These influences, both direct and indirect, highlight a complex interplay of environmental and individual elements.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Child Language Acquisition
- Sociolinguistics
Background:
- Child vocabulary competence shows significant individual variation.
- Understanding these variations requires a multivariate developmental ecological model.
- Maternal characteristics and child-specific factors are key areas of investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine sources of individual variation in child vocabulary competence.
- To investigate direct and indirect predictive relations within a developmental ecological model.
- To assess the simultaneous influence of maternal and child factors on vocabulary development.
Main Methods:
- Simultaneous evaluation of 126 children (aged 1;8) and their mothers.
- Utilized multiple measures of child vocabulary competence (spontaneous speech, assessments, maternal reports).
- Assessed maternal factors including sociodemographics, personality, parenting attitudes, knowledge, SES, and vocabulary.
Main Results:
- Child gender (girls higher) and social competence directly predicted child vocabulary competence.
- Maternal attitudes toward parenting also directly predicted child vocabulary competence.
- Maternal vocabulary directly predicted child vocabulary comprehension and expression, and indirectly influenced child vocabulary via social personality and child development knowledge.
Conclusions:
- Child vocabulary competence arises from a nexus of proximal and distal contextual factors.
- Maternal vocabulary, influenced by SES and verbal intelligence, plays a crucial role.
- Individual variation in child vocabulary is best understood through a comprehensive ecological model.