Effectiveness of a community-led shared book reading intervention in Syrian refugee children: a randomised controlled trial

• Published in: Scientific reports 2024-08, Vol.14 (1), p.17822-9, Article 17822
• Main Authors: Hadfield, Kristin, Al-Hamad, Mays, Dajani, Rana, El Kharouf, Amal, Michalek, Julia, Qtaishat, Lina, von Stumm, Sophie, Mareschal, Isabelle
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/477; 631/477/2811; Adult; Attitudes; Caregivers; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Children & youth; Community; Diplomatic & consular services; Families & family life; Female; Females; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Intervention; Jordan; Literacy; Male; Mothers; Mothers - psychology; multidisciplinary; Reading; Reading programs; Refugees; Refugees - psychology; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Syria; Volunteers
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-68903-9

Community-led, shared book reading programs may help improve refugee children’s reading abilities and attitudes towards reading. We Love Reading (WLR)—a light-touch, community-led, shared book reading program—was evaluated in a pre-registered, wait-listed, randomised controlled trial (AEARCTR-0006523). 322 Syrian refugee mother–child dyads (children: 4–8-year-olds, 50.0% female) in Jordan were tested at two timepoints, 15 weeks apart. WLR did not significantly affect child literacy or child-reported child attitudes toward reading ( p s > 0.05). Mothers did report improved child attitudes toward reading from WLR ( p  = 0.046, η 2  = 0.013). The intervention did not lead to improvements in family relationships ( p s > 0.05). WLR may have promise in improving attitudes toward reading in forcibly displaced children but did not affect literacy or child-reported attitudes toward reading; these results provide insight into what changes are needed for effective shared book reading interventions in this population.