Htqe.2023.07

https://doi.org/10.22364/htqe.2023.07 | 103-116 | PDF

Family and Environmental Factors Influencing Child Development

Dita Nīmante
University of Latvia, Latvia, Faculty of Education, Psychology and Art

Abstract. Long-term studies have provided evidence that child development potential is influenced not only by genetic factors but also by various family, home, and broader contextual environmental factors. The aim of the theoretical review is to identify the most significant socioeconomic factors of the environment/family environment that can negatively affect early child development, predicting lower school readiness, school performance, and lower academic achievements. The theoretical review sought answers to the following questions: which socioeconomic environmental factors, family factors influence the early child’s developmental potential, and what is their relationship with the child’s academic achievements? How are socioeconomic/family risks identified? The theoretical study determine several main groups of factors that can predict high family risks and hinder and negatively impact early child development. The results were used to construct the part of the screening instrument developed by University of Latvia researchers in cooperation with University of Liepaja and Riga Stradiņš University reserchers. The instrument – Early Childhood Development Screening Toolkit (In Latvian: Bērnu agrīnās attīstības skrīninga instrumentu komplekts – BAASIK).

Keywords: early child development, environment, family factors, socioeconomic factors, preschool.

Current paper was developed during the UL project “Preparatory Research for the Development of a Methodological Toolset for Assessing Early Childhood Development Needs”.

In: Human, Technologies and Quality of Education, 2023. Proceedings of Scientific Papers = Cilvēks, tehnoloģijas un izglītības kvalitāte, 2023. Rakstu krājums
Riga, University of Latvia, 2023. 796 p. Ed. L. Daniela
https://doi.org/10.22364/htqe.2023
ISBN 978-9934-36-116-6