Yeung W Jean, Linver Miriam R, Brooks-Gunn Jeanne
Center for Advanced Social Science, Research Department of Sociology, New York University, NY 10003, USA.
Child Dev. 2002 Nov-Dec;73(6):1861-79. doi: 10.1111/1467-8624.t01-1-00511.
This study used data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and its 1997 Child Development Supplement to examine how family income matters for young children's development. The sample included 753 children who were between ages 3 and 5 years in 1997. Two sets of mediating factors were examined that reflect two dominating views in the literature: (1) the investment perspective, and (2) the family process perspective. The study examined how two measures of income (stability and level) were associated with preschool children's developmental outcomes (Woodcock-Johnson [W-J] Achievement Test scores and the Behavior Problem Index [BPI]) through investment and family process pathways. Results supported the hypothesis that distinct mediating mechanisms operate on the association between income and different child outcomes. Much of the association between income and children's W-J scores was mediated by the family's ability to invest in providing a stimulating learning environment. In contrast, family income was associated with children's BPI scores primarily through maternal emotional distress and parenting practices. Level of income was associated with W-J letter-word scores and income stability was associated with W-J applied problem scores and BPI, even after all controls were included in the models.
本研究使用了收入动态面板研究及其1997年儿童发展补充调查的数据，以考察家庭收入对幼儿发展的重要性。样本包括1997年年龄在3至5岁之间的753名儿童。研究考察了两组中介因素，它们反映了文献中的两种主流观点：（1）投资视角，以及（2）家庭过程视角。该研究考察了两种收入衡量指标（稳定性和水平）如何通过投资和家庭过程途径与学龄前儿童的发展结果（伍德科克-约翰逊[W-J]成就测验分数和行为问题指数[BPI]）相关联。结果支持了这样的假设，即不同的中介机制作用于收入与不同儿童结果之间的关联。收入与儿童W-J分数之间的大部分关联是由家庭投资提供刺激性学习环境的能力所介导的。相比之下，家庭收入与儿童BPI分数的关联主要是通过母亲的情绪困扰和育儿方式。即使在模型中纳入了所有控制因素，收入水平仍与W-J字母-单词分数相关，收入稳定性与W-J应用问题分数和BPI相关。
