Why Do Richer Families Have Babies With Better Language Skills?
New research released this week indicates that the income and education levels of parents is linked to the ability of a baby to use hand gestures and to develop strong language skills. Study author Meredith Rowe said “The children who are gesturing about more things in their environment have larger vocabularies later,” said added “And we see that children from higher socioeconomic levels are gesturing more.” The findings were published in today’s issue of Science. Rowe and her researchers compared results of 50 children around Chicago when they were 14 months old and then when they were 4 ½ years-old. The study included video footage of the children interacting with their parents at home. Children who gestured with their parents more at 14 months were found to have a higher vocabulary level at 4 ½ years-old. The study also found that the income and education levels of the parents contributed to the child’s speech development. One possible theory is that households with a higher income
