Hostname: page-component-5d84bcc8dc-49p78 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-09-12T09:03:22.553Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Family factors predicting vocabulary in Turkish as a heritage language

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 January 2014

JESSICA A. WILLARD ,
ALEXANDRU AGACHE ,
JULIA JÄKEL ,
CHRISTIAN W. GLÜCK  and
BIRGIT LEYENDECKER
JESSICA A. WILLARD*
Affiliation:
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
ALEXANDRU AGACHE
Affiliation:
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
JULIA JÄKEL
Affiliation:
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
CHRISTIAN W. GLÜCK
Affiliation:
University of Leipzig
BIRGIT LEYENDECKER
Affiliation:
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE Jessica A. Willard, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Fakultät für Psychologie, AE Entwicklungspsychologie, GAFO 04/608, 44801 Bochum, Germany. E-mail: jessica.willard@rub.de
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Most immigrant parents face the challenge of passing on their heritage language to their children. Family predictors of Turkish heritage language vocabulary are examined for 119 preschoolers and 121 fourth graders in Germany. Path analyses link children's Turkish vocabulary to the family background (parents’ education and generational status), the home literacy environment (HLE), and mothers’ language use. The main findings are (a) the HLE predicts children's Turkish vocabulary, (b) mothers’ use of Turkish with their children predicts children's Turkish vocabulary, and (c) family background is mainly connected to Turkish vocabulary by way of mothers’ use of Turkish. The HLE and being exposed to Turkish are both important for children's heritage vocabulary. Thus, parents can use everyday resources to actively promote their children's Turkish language skills.

Information

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 36 , Issue 4 , July 2015 , pp. 875 - 898
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

REFERENCES

Adesope, O. O., Lavin, T., Thompson, T., & Ungerleider, C. (2010). A systematic review and meta-analysis of the cognitive correlates of bilingualism. Review of Educational Research, 80, 207–245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Aikens, N. L., & Barbarin, O. (2008). Socioeconomic differences in reading trajectories: The contribution of family, neighborhood, and school contexts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 100, 235–251.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Becker, B. (2011). Cognitive and language skills of Turkish children in Germany: A comparison of the second and third generation and mixed generational groups. International Migration Review, 45, 426–459.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bialystok, E., & Craik, F. I. M. (2010). Cognitive and linguistic processing in the bilingual mind. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19, 19–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowers, E. P., & Vasilyeva, M. (2011). The relation between teacher input and lexical growth of preschoolers. Applied Psycholinguistics, 32, 221–241.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burgess, S. R., Hecht, S. A., & Lonigan, C. J. (2002). Relations of the home literacy environment (HLE) to the development of reading-related abilities: A one-year longitudinal study. Reading Research Quarterly, 37, 408–426.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bus, A. G., van IJzendoorn, M. H., & Pellegrini, A. D. (1995). Joint book reading makes for success in learning to read: A meta-analysis on intergenerational transmission of literacy. Review of Educational Research, 65, 1–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Byers-Heinlein, K. (2012). Parental language mixing: Its measurement and the relation of mixed input to young bilingual children's vocabulary size. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition. Advance online publication.Google Scholar
Cabrera, N. J., Shannon, J. D., & Tamis-LeMonda, C. (2007). Fathers’ influence on their children's cognitive and emotional development: From toddlers to pre-K. Applied Developmental Science, 11, 208–213.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Caspar, U., & Leyendecker, B. (2011). Deutsch als Zweitsprache [German as a second language]. Zeitschrift für Entwicklungspsychologie und Pädagogische Psychologie, 43, 118–132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davison, M. D., Hammer, C., & Lawrence, F. R. (2011). Associations between preschool language and first grade reading outcomes in bilingual children. Journal of Communication Disorders, 44, 444–458.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dunn, L. M., & Dunn, D. M. (2007). PPVT4: Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (4th ed.). Minneapolis, MN: NCS Pearson.Google Scholar
Duursma, E., Romero-Contreras, S., Szuber, A., Proctor, P., Snow, C., August, D., et al. (2007). The role of home literacy and language environment on bilinguals’ English and Spanish vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics, 28, 171–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Enders, C. K. (2010). Applied missing data analysis. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Farver, J. A. M., Xu, Y., Eppe, S., & Lonigan, C. J. (2006). Home environments and young Latino children's school readiness. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 21, 196–212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fillmore, L. W. (2000). Loss of family languages: Should educators be concerned? Theory Into Practice, 39, 203.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fishman, J. A. (2004). Language maintenance, language shift, and reversing language shift. In Bhatia, T. K. & Ritchie, W. C. (Eds.), The handbook of bilingualism (pp. 406–436). Malden, MA: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Fuligni, A. J., & Yoshikawa, H. (2002). Socioeconomic resources, parenting, poverty, and child development among immigrant families. In Bornstein, M. H. (Ed.), Monographs in parenting. Socioeconomic status, parenting, and child development (pp. 107–124). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Gibson, T. A., Oller, D. K., Jarmulowicz, L., & Ethington, C. A. (2012). The receptive-expressive gap in the vocabulary of young second-language learners: Robustness and possible mechanisms. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 15, 102–116.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Glück, C. W. (2009). Receptive Vocabulary Test research version modeled on PPVT-4th edition for NUBBEK. Unpublished manuscript.Google Scholar
González-Ferrer, A. (2006). Who do immigrants marry? Partner choice among single immigrants in Germany. European Sociological Review, 22, 171–185.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hagenaars, A., de Vos, K., & Zaidi, M. A. (1994). Poverty statistics in the late 1980s: Research based on micro-data. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities.Google Scholar
Hammer, C. S., Davison, M. D., Lawrence, F. R., & Miccio, A. W. (2009). The effect of maternal language on bilingual children's vocabulary and emergent literacy development during Head Start and kindergarten. Scientific Studies of Reading, 13, 99–121.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Han, W.-J. (2010). Bilingualism and socioemotional well-being. Children and Youth Services Review, 32, 720–731.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Han, W.-J., & Huang, C.-C. (2010). The forgotten treasure: Bilingualism and Asian children's emotional and behavioral health. American Journal of Public Health, 100, 831–838.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Haug, S. (2008). Sprachliche Integration von Migranten in Deutschland (Integrationsreport) [Linguistic integration of immigrants in Germany]. Nürnberg, Germany. Retrieved September 26, 2011, from http://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/DE/Publikationen/WorkingPapers/wp14-sprachliche-integration.pdf?__blob=publicationFile Google Scholar
Hayes, A. F. (2009). Beyond Baron and Kenny: Statistical mediation analysis in the new millennium. Communication Monographs, 76, 408–420.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hesse, H.-G., & Göbel, K. (2009). Mehrsprachigkeit als Kapital: Ergebnisse der DESI-Studie [Multilingualism as a resource: Results of the DESI study]. In Gogolin, I. & Neumann, U. (Eds.), Streitfall Zweisprachigkeit: The bilingualism controversy (pp. 281–287). Wiesbaden: Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoff, E. (2006). How social contexts support and shape language development. Developmental Review, 26, 55–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoff, E., Core, C., Place, S., Rumiche, R., Señor, M., & Parra, M. (2012). Dual language exposure and early bilingual development. Journal of Child Language, 39, 1–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jäkel, J., Schölmerich, A., Kassis, W., & Leyendecker, B. (2011). Mothers’ and fathers’ bookreading predicts preschoolers’ development in Turkish immigrant and German families. International Journal of Developmental Science, 5, 27–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Klassert, A., & Gagarina, N. (2010). Der Einfluss des elterlichen Inputs auf die Sprachentwicklung bilingualer Kinder: Evidenz aus russischsprachigen Migrantenfamilien in Berlin [Parental input's influence on bilingual children's language development: Evidence from Russian-speaking immigrant families in Berlin]. Diskurs Kindheits-und Jugendforschung, 5, 413–425.Google Scholar
Lachaud, C. M., & Renaud, O. (2011). A tutorial for analyzing human reaction times: How to filter data, manage missing values, and choose a statistical model. Applied Psycholinguistics, 32, 389.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lambert, W. E., & Taylor, D. M. (1996). Language in the lives of ethnic minorities: Cuban American families in Miami. Applied Linguistics, 17, 477–500.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lee, J. (2011). Size matters: Early vocabulary as a predictor of language and literacy competence. Applied Psycholinguistics, 32, 69–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacKinnon, D. P. (2008). Introduction to statistical mediation analysis. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Mancilla-Martinez, J., & Lesaux, N. K. (2011). Early home language use and later vocabulary development. Journal of Educational Psychology, 103, 535–546.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mol, S. E., & Bus, A. G. (2011). To read or not to read: A meta-analysis of print exposure from infancy to early adulthood. Psychological Bulletin, 137, 267–296.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998–2012). Mplus user's guide (7th ed.). Los Angeles: Author.Google Scholar
Neumann, U. (2008). Einstellungen von Eltern zur Zweisprachigkeit: Ergebnisse aus Befragungen an bilingualen Grundschulen in Hamburg [Parent's attitudes toward bilingualism: Results from a survey at bilingual elementary schools in Hamburg]. Rosen, In L. & Farrokhzad, S. (Eds.), Macht–Kultur– Bildung. Festschrift für Georg Auernheimer (pp. 291–310). Münster: Waxmann.Google Scholar
Niklas, F., & Schneider, W. (2010). Der Zusammenhang von familiärer Lernumwelt mit schulrelevanten Kompetenzen im Vorschulalter [The relationship between home learning environment and schoolrelevant competencies for kindergarten age]. Zeitschrift für Soziologie der Erziehung und Sozialisation, 30, 149–165.Google Scholar
Oller, D. K., & Eilers, R. E. (2002). Language and literacy in bilingual children. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oller, D. K., Jarmulowicz, L., Pearson, B. Z., & Cobo-Lewis, A. B. (2011). Rapid spoken language shift in early second language learning: The role of peers and effects on the first language. In Durgunoğlu, A. Y. & Goldenberg, C. N. (Eds.), Language and literacy development in bilingual settings (pp. 94–120). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Ordóñez, C. L., Carlo, M. S., Snow, C. E., & McLaughlin, B. (2002). Depth and breadth of vocabulary in two languages: Which vocabulary skills transfer? Journal of Educational Psychology, 94, 719–728.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (1999). Classifying educational programmes: Manual for ISCED-97 implementation in OECD countries. Paris: OECD Publications Service.Google Scholar
Pan, B. A., Rowe, M. L., Singer, J. D., & Snow, C. E. (2005). Maternal correlates of growth in toddler vocabulary production in low-income families. Child Development, 76, 763–782.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pancsofar, N., & Vernon-Feagans, L. (2006). Mother and father language input to young children: Contributions to later language development. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 27, 571–587.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pancsofar, N., & Vernon-Feagans, L. (2010). Fathers’ early contributions to children's language development in families from low-income rural communities. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25, 450–463.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Park, H., Tsai, K. M., Liu, L. L., & Lau, A. S. (2012). Transactional associations between supportive family climate and young children's heritage language proficiency in immigrant families. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 36, 226–236.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patterson, J. L. (2002). Relationships of expressive vocabulary to frequency of reading and television among bilingual toddlers. Applied Psycholinguistics, 23, 493–508.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patterson, J. L., & Pearson, B. Z. (2004). Bilingual lexical development: Influences, contexts, and processes. In Goldstein, B. A. (Ed.), Bilingual language development and disorders in Spanish–English speakers (pp. 77–104). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.Google Scholar
Pearson, B. Z. (2007). Social factors in childhood bilingualism in the United States. Applied Psycholinguistics, 28, 399–410.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pearson, B. Z., Fernandez, S. C., Lewedeg, V., & Oller, D. (1997). The relation of input factors to lexical learning by bilingual infants. Applied Psycholinguistics, 18, 41–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Place, S., & Hoff, E. (2011). Properties of dual language exposure that influence 2-year-olds’ bilingual proficiency. Child Development, 82, 1834–1849.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Prevoo, M. J. L., Mesman, J., van IJzendoorn, M. H., & Pieper, S. (2011). Bilingual toddlers reap the language they sow: Ethnic minority toddlers’ childcare attendance increases maternal host language use. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 32, 561–576.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Raikes, H., Alexander Pan, B., Luze, G., Tamis-LeMonda, C. S., Brooks-Gunn, J., Constantine, J., et al. (2006). Mother–child bookreading in low-income families: Correlates and outcomes during the first three years of life. Child Development, 77, 924–953.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rumbaut, R. (2004). Ages, life stages, and generational cohorts: Decomposing the immigrant first and second generation in the United States. International Migration Review, 3, 1160–1205.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rucker, D. D., Preacher, K. J., Tormala, Z. L., & Petty, R. E. (2011). Mediation analysis in social psychology: Current practices and new recommendations. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 5, 359–371.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scheele, A. F., Leseman, P. P. M., & Mayo, A. Y. (2010). The home language environment of monolingual and bilingual children and their language proficiency. Applied Psycholinguistics, 31, 117–140.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sénéchal, M., & LeFevre, J.-A. (2001). Storybook reading and parent teaching: Links to language and literacy development. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2001, 39–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sénéchal, M., LeFevre, J.-A., Hudson, E., & Lawson, E. P. (1996). Knowledge of storybooks as a predictor of young children's vocabulary. Journal of Educational Psychology, 88, 520–536.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Statistisches Bundesamt. (2010). Bevölkerung mit Migrationshintergrund: Ergebnisse des Mikrozensus 2010 [Population with an immigration background: Results of the microcensus 2010]. Wiesbaden: Author. Retrieved June 14, 2012, from https://www.destatis.de/DE/Publikationen/Thematisch/Bevoelkerung/MigrationIntegration/Migrationshintergrund2010220107004.pdf?__blob=publicationFile Google Scholar
Treffers-Daller, J., Özsoy, A. S., & van Hout, R. (2007). (In)complete acquisition of Turkish among Turkish–German bilinguals in Germany and Turkey: An analysis of complex embeddings in narratives. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 10, 248–276.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tseng, V., & Fuligni, A. J. (2000). Parent–adolescent language use and relationships among immigrant families with East Asian, Filipino, and Latin American backgrounds. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62, 465–476.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Steensel, R. (2006). Relations between socio-cultural factors, the home literacy environment and children's literacy development in the first years of primary education. Journal of Research in Reading, 29, 367–382 CrossRefGoogle Scholar