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The contribution of early language development to children's emotional and behavioural functioning at 6 years: An analysis of data from the Children in Focus sample from the ALSPAC birth cohort

Roulstone, Susan; Clegg, Judy; Law, James; Rush, Robert; Peters, Tim J.; Roulstone, Sue

Authors

Susan Roulstone

Judy Clegg

James Law

Robert Rush

Tim J. Peters

Sue Roulstone



Abstract

© 2014 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health. Background: An association between children's early language development and their emotional and behavioural functioning is reported in the literature. The nature of the association remains unclear and it has not been established if such an association is found in a population-based cohort in addition to clinical populations.Methods: This study examines the reported association between language development and emotional and behavioural functioning in a population-based cohort. Data from 1,314 children in the Children in Focus (CiF) sample from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) were analysed. Regression models identified the extent to which early language ability at 2 years of age and later language ability at 4 years of age is associated with emotional and behavioural functioning at 6 years while accounting for biological and social risk and adjusting for age and performance intelligence (PIQ).Results: A series of univariable and multivariable analyses identified a strong influence of biological risk, social risk and early and later language ability to emotional and behavioural functioning. Interestingly, social risk dropped out of the multivariate analyses when age and PIQ were controlled for. Early expressive vocabulary at 2 years and receptive language at 4 years made a strong contribution to emotional and behavioural functioning at 6 years in addition to biological risk. The final model accounted for 11.6% of the variance in emotional and behavioural functioning at 6 years.Conclusions: The study identified that early language ability at 2 years, specifically expressive vocabulary and later receptive language at 4 years both made a moderate, but important contribution to emotional and behavioural functioning at 6 years of age. Although children's language development is important in understanding children's emotional and behavioural functioning, the study shows that it is one of many developmental factors involved.

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jan 1, 2014
Publication Date Jan 1, 2015
Deposit Date Jan 12, 2018
Journal Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines
Print ISSN 0021-9630
Electronic ISSN 1469-7610
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 56
Issue 1
Pages 67-75
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12281
Keywords children, language development, ALSPAC, emotional and behavioural functioning
Public URL https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/823709
Publisher URL http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12281
Contract Date Jan 12, 2018



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