When home hurts: the impact of adverse family physical environment on early childhood cognitive and social development

Emerging research has highlighted the link between adverse family physical environment and negative outcomes in children. However, limited attention has been given to whether family physical environment also influences children’s cognitive and social development. To address this gap, the current study examined the associations between adverse family physical environment and cognitive and social outcomes in early childhood. Data were drawn from the U.S. Future of Families & Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS). Family physical environment data was collected when children were 3 years old, and child cognitive and social outcomes data was gathered when children were 5 years old. Multivariate regression models were run to assess whether adverse family physical environment would predict child attention, receptive vocabulary, word identification, and social competence. All models were adjusted for demographic variables and a series of family-related social factors. Results showed that adverse family physical environment was significantly related with lower receptive vocabulary (B = −0.66; 95% CI [−1.22, −0.11]), word identification (B = −0.82; 95% CI [−1.41, −0.23]), and social competence (B = −0.13; 95% CI [−0.27, −0.004]), even after accounting for covariates. However, no significant associations were found with children’s focused attention or impulsivity. Supplementary regression analyses further indicated that high quality child care might significantly improve child cognitive outcomes despite adverse family physical environment. The study findings highlight the importance of improving household physical conditions and expanding access to high quality child care as potential strategies for enhancing cognitive and social development in young children.