Group differences

3.1.2.5.1 Gender effects

Preliminary analyses of the interview items did not reveal gender differences in storybook exposure. However, parents reported teaching girls about letters and helping girls to write words more often than boys (Mann Whitney U=3179.00,

p=.019; U=3193.50, p<.001 respectively). No gender differences were observed in

the frequency with which parents taught children to read words. Moreover, parents tended to report that girls were more interested in storybooks than boys; significant differences were observed in the frequency of reading requests (U=3371, p=.006) and children’s enjoyment of storybooks (U=3619.50, p=.023), and the higher frequency with which girls were reported to engage with print independently was marginally significant (U=3673.00, p=.059). Therefore, in the current data set, gender effects were found in direct instruction and children’s interest in literacy, but not in storybook exposure. Nonetheless, data were collapsed across genders in the next step of analysis, in order to investigate the main effect of risk status on the individual interview items.

3.1.2.5.2 FR/TD group differences

Measures of central tendency and dispersion for the FR and TD groups on all HLE interview items are presented in Table 3.4, along with tests of difference (independent samples t-tests for the continuous measures and Mann-Whitney U tests for the ordinal scales). There was a non-significant trend for TD families to engage in shared reading more often, and to read more books at bedtime, than FR families. This group difference may in part be driven by the FR-SLI families (see section 3.1.2.5.3). No group differences emerged in the age of onset of shared reading, the

120 number of children’s books in the home, nor the frequency of library visits. Frequency of direct instruction of letters, reading and writing was comparable between the two groups. Likewise, parental reports of children’s requests for storybook reading and independent looking at books did not differ between groups. However, even at this young age, parental reports of children’s enjoyment of storybook reading were lower in the FR group and this difference reached statistical significance. In addition, FR parents reported enjoying reading for pleasure themselves significantly less than TD parents.

Overall then, there were few differences in literacy-related interactions in the home between FR and TD families, and those differences that did emerge had small effect sizes. Where FR/TD group differences were more evident was in the questions relating to enjoyment of reading. Parental reports of children’s enjoyment showed a restricted variance in scores, making inferential analysis problematic. Nevertheless, the TD>FR difference on this item reached significance, and it is noteworthy that all children who were reported not to enjoy storybook reading came from the FR group. Similarly, and as expected given the dyslexic status of some of these participants, parents’ self-reported enjoyment of reading was lower among FR than TD parents. These results imply that, while FR families may be cognisant of the cultural value placed in shared reading and therefore engage in as much storybook reading with children as TD families, these interactions may be less enjoyable for both children and parents.

3.1.2.5.3 FR-only/FR-SLI group differences

A further set of group comparisons was conducted within the FR group, in order to establish whether HLE experiences differed between children with and

121 without language impairment. The two groups were matched for maternal education level; family SES is described in detail in Section 3.4 below. Measures of central tendency, dispersion and tests of difference for the FR-only and FR-SLI groups on the HLE interview items are presented in Table 3.5.

There was a non-significant trend for parents of FR-SLI children to report reading with their children less frequently, and having started reading with their children at a later age, than FR-only parents. Similarly, FR-SLI parents reported having fewer children’s books available in the home than FR-only parents, although this difference did not reach significance. All of these differences represent small effect sizes. There were no differences between the two FR groups in the frequency of direct instruction in the home, nor in parental reports of children’s interest in storybooks. However, parents in the FR-SLI group reported enjoying reading themselves less than parents in the FR-only group.

Overall, parental reports of HLE were comparable between FR-only and FR- SLI groups, although there was a tendency for the parents of FR-SLI children to report lower levels of storybook exposure than FR-only children. This difference may emerge more clearly if a larger group of FR-SLI children were recruited. The putative reduced storybook exposure for these language-impaired children may reflect gene-environment interplay. Previous research has indicated that LI children have difficulty in taking part in conversations during shared storybook reading (Barachetti & Lavelli, 2011; Crowe, 2000). Some children with language

122

Table 3.4

FR (n=116)/TD (n=72) group differences on HLE interview items

Item FR mean (s.d.) FR median (range) TD mean (s.d.) TD median (range) Test of difference p Effect size d/ r Storybook Exposure

Total frequency of shared reading

(Shared reading at bedtime + other times)

9.57(3.73) - 10.58 (3.25) - t(186) =1.90 .059 d=.33

Typical number of bedtime stories 1.66 (.89) - 2.11 (.92) - t(186)=3.35 .051 d=.28

Age of onset shared reading

(1 = 24+ months; 2=18-23 months; 3= 12-17 months; 4 = 6-11 months; 5 = 0-5 months)

- 5(1-5) - 5(1-5) U=3531.50 .167 -

Number of children’s books in home

(1=0-20; 2=21-40; 3=41-60; 4=61-100; 5=100-150; 6=150-200; 7=200+)

- 5(1-7) - 5(2-7) U=3864.50 .379 -

Frequency of library visits

(1=never; 2=occasionally; 3=at least once a month; 4=at least once a week)

- 3(1-4) - 3(1-4) U=3615.00 .106 -

Direct Instruction

Frequency of letter instruction

(1=never/occasionally; 2=at least once a month; 3= at least once a week; 4= several times a week; 5=daily)

- 4(1-5) - 4(1-5) U=3824.50 .310 -

Frequency of reading instruction (as previous item)

- 3(1-5) - 3(1-5) U=4142.00 .922 -

Frequency of writing instruction (as previous item)

- 3(1-5) - 3(1-5) U=4145.50 .931 -

Child Interest

Frequency of shared reading requests

(1=never/occasionally; 2=at least once a month; 3= at least once a week; 4= daily; 5=several times a day)

- 4(1-5) - 3.5(1-5) U=3836.50 .331 -

Frequency of independent reading (as previous item)

- 3.5(1-5) - 4(1-5) U=3740.50 .212 -

Enjoyment of reading

(1=strongly dislikes; 2= dislikes; 3=neither likes nor dislikes; 4= likes; 5=strongly likes)

- 5(2-5) - 5(3-5) U=3333.00 .007 r=.20

Adult Variables

Enjoyment of reading (as previous item)

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Table 3.5

FR-only (n=87)/FR-SLI (n=29) group differences on HLE interview items

Item FR-only mean (s.d.) FR-only median (range) FR-SLI mean (s.d.) FR-SLI median (range) Test of difference p Effect size Storybook Exposure

Total frequency of shared reading

(Shared reading at bedtime + other times)

9.93 (3.50) - 8.48 (4.23) - t(114) = 1.83 .070 d=.37

Typical number of bedtime stories 1.69 (0.83) - 1.57 (1.05) - t(114)=0.63 .528 -

Age of onset shared reading

(1 = 24+ months; 2=18-23 months; 3= 12-17 months; 4 = 6-11 months; 5 = 0-5 months)

- 5 (1-5) - 4 (1-5) U=991.00 .056 r=.19

Number of children’s books in home

(1=0-20; 2=21-40; 3=41-60; 4=61-100; 5=100-150; 6=150-200; 7=200+)

- 5 (1-7) - 4 (2-7) U=978.50 .065 r=.18

Frequency of library visits

(1=never; 2=occasionally; 3=at least once a month; 4=at least once a week)

- 3 (1-4) - 2 (1-4) U=1164.50 .519 -

Direct Instruction

Frequency of letter instruction

(1=never/occasionally; 2=at least once a month; 3= at least once a week; 4= several times a week; 5=daily)

- 4 (1-5) - 3 (1-5) U=1048.50 .151 -

Frequency of reading instruction (as previous item)

- 4 (1-5) - 3 (1-5) U=1196.50 .665 -

Frequency of writing instruction (as previous item)

- 3 (1-5) - 3 (1-5) U=1190.00 .639 -

Child Interest

Frequency of shared reading requests

(1=never/occasionally; 2=at least once a month; 3= at least once a week; 4= daily; 5=several times a day)

- 3 (1-5) - 4 (1-5) U=1254.00 .960 -

Frequency of independent reading (as previous item)

- 4 (1-5) - 3 (1-5) U=1118.50 .346 -

Enjoyment of reading

(1=strongly dislikes; 2= dislikes; 3=neither likes nor dislikes; 4= likes; 5=strongly likes)

- 5 (2-5) - 5 (3-5) U=1203.50 .677 .

Adult Variables

Enjoyment of reading (as previous item)

124 such language-heavy interactions. However, the fact that parents within this group also reported enjoying reading less than parents in the FR-only group may also reflect less orientation to books overall in the family environment of these children. These small group differences in items relating to storybook exposure and enjoyment of books suggest that the FR-SLI families contribute to the lower mean scores of the whole FR group compared to the TD group, as presented in the previous section.