Predicting ethnic minority children's vocabulary from socioeconomic status, maternal language and home reading input: different pathways for host and ethnic language

• Published in: Journal of child language 2014-09, Vol.41 (5), p.963-984
• Main Authors: PREVOO, MARIËLLE J. L., MALDA, MAIKE, MESMAN, JUDI, EMMEN, ROSANNEKE A. G., YENIAD, NIHAL, VAN IJZENDOORN, MARINUS H., LINTING, MARIËLLE
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bilingual education; Bilingualism; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child development; Child Language; Child, Preschool; Childrens literature; Correlation; Developmental psychology; Dutch language; Educational Resources; Emigrants and Immigrants - psychology; Emigrants and Immigrants - statistics & numerical data; Ethnic Groups; Ethnic Groups - psychology; Ethnic Groups - statistics & numerical data; Foreign Countries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Immigrants; Indo European Languages; Language Acquisition; Language Proficiency; Language Usage; Language use; Linguistic Input; Minority & ethnic groups; Minority Groups; Minority Groups - psychology; Minority Groups - statistics & numerical data; Mothers; Mothers - psychology; Mothers - statistics & numerical data; Multilingualism; Native Language; Netherlands; Parent Child Relationship; Parents & parenting; Prediction; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Reading; Reading Aloud to Others; Reading instruction; Second Language Learning; Socioeconomic Factors; Socioeconomic Status; Surveys and Questionnaires; Turkey - ethnology; Turkic Languages; Turkish; Turkish language; Vocabulary; Vocabulary Development
• ISSN: 0305-0009; 1469-7602
• DOI: 10.1017/S0305000913000299

When bilingual children enter formal reading education, host language proficiency becomes increasingly important. This study investigated the relation between socioeconomic status (SES), maternal language use, reading input, and vocabulary in a sample of 111 six-year-old children of first- and second-generation Turkish immigrant parents in the Netherlands. Mothers reported on their language use with the child, frequency of reading by both parents, and availability of children's books in the ethnic and the host language. Children's Dutch and Turkish vocabulary were tested during a home visit. SES was related to maternal language use and to host language reading input. Reading input mediated the relation between SES and host language vocabulary and between maternal language use and host language vocabulary, whereas only maternal language use was related to ethnic language vocabulary. During transition to formal reading education, one should be aware that children from low-SES families receive less host language reading input.