Abstract
Language ability is strongly related to important child developmental outcomes. Family-level socioeconomic status influences child language ability; it is unclear if, and through which mechanisms, neighborhood-level factors impact child language. The current study investigated the association between neighborhood factors (deprivation and disorder) assessed before birth and child language outcomes at age 5, with sleep duration as a potential underlying pathway. Secondary analysis was conducted on data collected between 2008 and 2018 on a subsample of 2444 participants from the All Our Families cohort study (Calgary, Canada) for whom neighborhood information from pregnancy could be geocoded. Neighborhood deprivation was determined using the Vancouver Area Neighborhood Deprivation Index (VANDIX), and disorder was assessed using crime reports. Mothers reported on their children’s sleep duration and language ability. Multilevel modeling indicated that greater neighborhood deprivation and disorder during pregnancy were predictive of lower scores on the Child Communication Checklist–2 (CCC–2) at 5 years. Path analyses revealed an indirect effect of neighborhood disorder on language through child sleep duration at 12 months. These results add to growing evidence that child development should be considered within the context of multiple systems. Sleep duration as an underlying link between environmental factors and child language ability warrants further study as a potential target for intervention.
Highlights
The emergence of language during early childhood is a remarkable developmental accomplishment
Using secondary data from the All Our Families cohort study, the primary objective of the current study is to examine the extent that neighborhood deprivation and disorder during pregnancy are associated with language skills when children are 5 years old
The secondary goal of the current study is to explore whether sleep duration during the first year of infancy represents a potential pathway through which neighborhood influences language development
Summary
The emergence of language during early childhood is a remarkable developmental accomplishment. Strong language skills are positively associated with self-regulation, social competence, and academic performance in children [1–5]. Poor language ability is linked with developmental consequences including difficulties with emotion regulation, internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems, as well as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder [8–10]. The present study explored how neighborhoods influence child language development, and whether sleep represents a potential underlying mechanism. As conceptions of healthy development have shifted focus to social and interpersonal concerns, language therapists argue that language disparities are a matter of public health that warrant population-level solutions [13]. It is essential to study language skills in the context of multiple, layered environmental influences in order to advance equitable interventions with modifiable targets at both individual and population levels
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