The effect of infant temperament and parenting on the home environment and school-entry language skills

The early caregiving environment is very important for children’s language skills, and children’s language at school entry predicts their later academic success. Research has demonstrated that both the style of parenting and the kinds of activities available to children at home (the ‘home learning environment’) affect language development. Infant temperament – how fussy or sociable a child is – can also affect parenting styles. However, none have identified how the relationship between temperament and parenting impacts the early home learning environment and school-entry language skills in low-income, multi-lingual families. The proposed study would address this gap, and complement existing work on rates of early language delay in the BiBBS cohort, and socioemotional development and language skills at an older age in BiB families.