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Home Environment and Early Development of Rural Children: Evidence from Guizhou Province in China

Author

Listed:
  • Lena Kuhn

    (Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economics, 06120 Halle, Germany)

  • Chengfang Liu

    (China Center for Agricultural Policy, School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

  • Tianyi Wang

    (China Center for Agricultural Policy, School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

  • Renfu Luo

    (China Center for Agricultural Policy, School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China)

Abstract

Delays in early child development are among the aspects underlying the persistent developmental gaps between regions and social strata. This study seeks to examine the relationship between the home environment and early child development in less-developed rural areas by drawing on data from 445 children from villages in Guizhou province in southwest China. A demographic questionnaire, the Home Observation Measurement of the Environment (HOME), and the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, version III (BSID-III), were used to measure the child’s demographic characteristics, home environment, and early development outcomes, respectively. Our data show that the sample children suffer a delay in various dimensions of child development and a deficit in the HOME scale. The results from a hierarchical regression model suggest that the availability of learning material at home, caregivers’ responsiveness and organization sub-scales are significantly positively correlated with the early development of sample children, after controlling for general socioeconomic status, health, and nutrition, and this correlation differs by gender. These results imply that the provision of learning material to households, promoting caregivers’ responsiveness and organization in less-developed rural areas could improve early child development among deprived children.

Suggested Citation

  • Lena Kuhn & Chengfang Liu & Tianyi Wang & Renfu Luo, 2021. "Home Environment and Early Development of Rural Children: Evidence from Guizhou Province in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-18, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:11:p:6121-:d:569811
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