Predictors of Expressive Vocabulary Delay in Children: The Quality of Home Environment in 3-Year-Old Late Talkers and Typically Developing Children

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of home environment quality on children’s expressive vocabulary development by comparing the home environments of 3-year-old late talkers and typically developing children. The study used the data of 1,723 3-year-old children from the Korean Children’s Panel Study 4th wave data (2011) of the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education (KICCE). Frequency analysis, t-test, and logistic regression were performed to analyze the data. The Early Childhood HOME(ECHOME) was used to measure the quality of home environment and a new variable ‘overall home environment’ was created to represent the average of the six sub-domains of home environment quality. T-test results indicated significant differences in the overall home environment quality and every sub-domain between 3-year-old late talking children and typically developing children. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the overall home environment quality at the age of 3 was a significant predictor distinguishing the two groups. When all six sub-domains were included as an independent variable, learning materials and diversity demonstrated significant influences. This study emphasizes the significance of home environment quality as a predictor of expressive vocabulary delay and identifies specific sub-domains that influence children's language development.