In response to increasing research and policy interest in the neighborhood context of early school success, this study examined relations among neighborhood social networks, home literacy practices/resources, and children’s expressive vocabulary in a suburban at-risk sample in the USA at the beginning of the school year. In a Structural Equation Model, neighborhood social networks predicted home literacy, which in turn predicted expressive vocabulary. The indirect effect of neighborhood social networks on expressive vocabulary was also significant. Implications for future research and preventive interventions concerning the role of neighborhoods in enhancing family reading behavior and the early literacy of at-risk preschool children are discussed.
BarnesJ.ChengH. (2006) Do parental neighborhoods contribute to child behaviour problems? A study of disadvantaged children. Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies1: 2–14. doi:10.1080/17450120600659044.
2.
Barnes McGuireJ. (1997) The reliability and validity of a questionnaire describing neighborhood characteristics relevant to families and young children living in urban areas. Journal of Community Psychology25: 551–566. doi:10.1002/(sici)15206629(199711)25:6<551::aid-jcop5>3.0.co;2-s.
3.
BerubeA.KneeboneE. (2006) Two steps back: City and suburban poverty trends 1999–2005, Washington, DC: Brookings Institution.
BrackenS. S.FischelJ. E. (2008) Family reading behavior and early literacy skills in preschool children from low-income backgrounds. Early Education and Development19: 45–67. doi:10.1080/10409280701838835.
6.
BronfenbrennerU.MorrisP. A. (2006) The bioecological model of human development. In: LernerR. M.DamonW. (eds) Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 1. Theoretical models of human development, 6th ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc, pp. 793–828.
7.
BurgessS. R.HechtS. A.LoniganC. J. (2002) Relations of the home literacy environment (HLE) to the development of reading-related abilities. Reading Research Quarterly37: 408–426. doi:10.1598/RRQ.37.4.4.
8.
BusA.van IJzendoornM. H.PellegriniA. D. (1995) Joint book reading makes for success in learning to read: A meta-analysis of intergenerational transmission of literacy. Review of Educational Research65: 1–21.
9.
ByrneB. M. (1994) Structural equation modeling with EQS and EQS/Windows, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
10.
CaldwellB. M.BradleyR. H. (2003) Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment: Administration Manual, Tempe, AZ: Family & Human Dynamics Research Institute, Arizona State University.
11.
ChongW. H.LeeB. O.TanS. Y.WongS. S.YeoL. S. (2013) School psychology and school-based child and family interventions in Singapore. School Psychology International34(2): 177–189.
12.
CoultonC. J.KorbinJ.ChanT.SuM. (2001) Mapping residents’ perceptions of neighborhood boundaries: A methodological note. American Journal of Community Psychology29: 371–383. doi:10.1023/A:1010303419034.
13.
DeWaltD. A.BerkmanN. D.SheridanS.LohrK. N.PignoneM. P. (2004) Literacy and health outcomes. Journal of General Internal Medicine19: 1228–1239. doi:10.1111/j.1525-1497.2004.40153.x.
14.
FantuzzoJ. W.TigheE.ChildsS. (2000) Family involvement questionnaire: A multivariate assessment of family participation in early childhood education. Journal of Educational Psychology92: 367–376. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.92.2.367.
15.
FroilandJ. M. (2011a) Examining the effects of location, neighborhood social organization, and home literacy on early cognitive skills in the United States. International Journal of Psychology: A Biopsychosocial Approach9: 29–42.
16.
FroilandJ. M. (2011b) Parental autonomy support and student learning goals: A preliminary examination of an intrinsic motivation intervention. Child and Youth Care Forum40: 135–149. doi:10.1007/s10566-010-9126-2.
17.
FroilandJ. M. (2013) Neighborhood effects. In: AinsworthJ.GolsonG. (eds) Sociology of education: An A-to-Z guide, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
18.
FroilandJ. M.PetersonA.DavisonM. L. (2013) The long-term effects of early parent involvement and parent expectation in the USA. School Psychology International34(1): 33–50.
19.
FroilandJ. M.PowellD. R.DiamondK. E.SonS.-H. (2013) Neighborhood socioeconomic well-being, home literacy, and early literacy skills of at-risk preschoolers. Psychology in the Schools. Advance online publication. doi:10.1002/pits.21711.
20.
GarbaczS. A.SheridanS. M. (2011) A multidimensional examination of New Zealand family involvement in education. School Psychology International32(6): 600–615.
21.
HartB.RisleyT. R. (1995) Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children, Baltimore, MD: Paul H Brookes Publishing.
22.
Hoover-DempseyK. V.SandlerH. M. (1995) Parent involvement in children’s education: Why does it make a difference?Teachers College Record97: 310–331.
23.
HuL.BentlerP. (1999) Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling6: 1–55.
24.
Hulsey, L. K., Aikens, N., Kopack, A., West, J., Moiduddin, E., & Tarullo, L. (2011).Head start children, families, and programs: Present and past data from FACES (OPRE Report 201133a). Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, US Department of Health and Human Services.
25.
JohnsonD. W.JohnsonR. T.SmithK. (2007) The state of cooperative learning in postsecondary and professional settings. Educational Psychology Review19(1): 15–29. doi:10.1007/s10648-006-9038-8.
26.
JosephM. L.ChaskinR. J.WebberH. S. (2007) The theoretical basis for addressing poverty through mixed income development. Urban Affairs Review42: 369–409. doi:10.1177/1078087406294043.
27.
KeelsM. (2008) Neighborhood effects examined through the lens of residential mobility programs. American Journal of Community Psychology42: 235–250. doi:10.1007/s10464-008-9204-x.
28.
KimY.-S. (2009) The relationship between home literacy practices and developmental trajectories of emergent literacy and conventional literacy skills for Korean children. Reading and Writing22: 57–84. doi:10.1007/s11145-007-9103-9.
29.
KohenD. E.LeventhalT.DahintenV. S.McIntoshC. N. (2008) Neighborhood disadvantage: Pathways of effects for young children. Child Development79: 156–169. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01117.x.
30.
LawsonM. A.Alameda-LawsonT. (2012) A case study of school-linked, collective parent engagement. American Educational Research Journal49: 651–684. doi:10.3102/0002831211427206.
31.
LoniganC. J.ShanahanT.CunninghamA.. with the National Early Literacy Panel. National Early Literacy Panel (2008) Impact of shared-reading interventions on young children’s early literacy skills. Developing early literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel, Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy, pp. 153–170.
32.
LudwigJ.DuncanG. J.GennetianL. A.KatzL. F.KesslerR. C.KlingJ. R.SanbonmatsuL. (2012) Neighborhood effects on the long-term well-being of low-income adults. Science337(6101): 1505–1510. doi:10.1126/science.1224648.
33.
McGrewK. S.WoodcockR. W. (2001) Technical Manual. Woodcock Johnson III, Itasca, IL: Riverside Publishing.
34.
McPhersonM.Smith-LovinL.CookJ. M. (2001) Birds of a feather: Homophily in social networks. Annual Review of Sociology27: 415–444. doi:10.1146/annurev.soc.27.1.415.
35.
MendezJ. L. (2010) How can parents get involved in preschool? Barriers and engagement in education by ethnic minority parents of children attending Head Start. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology16(1): 26–26. doi:10.1037/a0016258.
36.
NakhidC. (2009) The meaning of family and home for young Pasifika people involved in gangs in the suburbs of South Auckland. Social Policy Journal of New Zealand35: 112–128.
37.
O’BrienR. W.D’ElioM. A.Vaden-KiernanM.MaggeeC.YounoszaiT.Keane (2002) A descriptive study of Head Start families: FACES technical report I, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
38.
PowellD. R.ZambranaR.Silva-PalaciosV. (1990) Designing culturally responsive parent programs: A comparison of low-income Mexican and Mexican-American mothers’ preferences. Family Relations39: 298–304.
39.
SchoonI.ParsonsS.RushR.LawJ. (2010) Childhood language skills and adult literacy: A 29-year follow-up study. Pediatrics125(3): e459–e466. doi:10.1542/peds.2008-2111.
40.
SénéchalM.LeFevreJ.-A. (2002) Parental involvement in the development of children’s reading skill: A five-year longitudinal study. Child Development73: 445–460. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00417.
41.
ShroutP. E.BolgerN. (2002) Mediation in experimental and nonexperimental studies: New procedures and recommendations. Psychological Methods7: 422–445. doi:10.1037/1082-989X.7.4.422.
42.
SinkT.CehB. (2011) Relocation of urban poor in Chicago: HOPE VI policy outcomes. Geoforum42: 71–82. doi:10.1016/j.geoforum.2010.10.001.
43.
StorchS. A.WhitehurstG. J. (2002) Oral language and code-related precursors to reading: Evidence from a longitudinal structural model. Developmental Psychology38: 934–947. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.38.6.934.
44.
TangdhanakanondK.LeeD. H. (2014) Thai and Korean Students’ perceptions about the roles and functions of school psychologists. School Psychology International35(2): 115–121.
WaandersC.MendezJ. L.DownerJ. T. (2007) Parent characteristics, economic stress and neighborhood context as predictors of parent involvement in preschool children’s education. Journal of School Psychology45: 619–636. doi:10.1016/j.jsp.2007.07.003.
48.
WhitehurstG. J. (1993) Stony Brook Family Reading Survey, Stony Brook, NY: Author.
49.
YaroszD. J.BarnettW. S. (2001) Who reads to young children? Identifying predictors of family reading activities. Reading Psychology22: 67–81. doi:10.1080/02702710121153.
