Maternal belief systems: Linchpin in the home reading process

Abstract

A hypothetical model of the determinants and outcomes of reading aloud was tested using two samples of families of preschool-aged children and their parents. Study 1 involved 60 low-income families. Study 2 involved 56 predominantly working-class families. The majority of subjects in both samples were African American. Measures were taken of SES, maternal literacy, maternal beliefs about reading aloud, the frequency and quality of reading interactions with the child, children's interest in reading, and children's oral language skills. Demographic characteristics and maternal literacy were positively related to maternal reading beliefs. Beliefs were highly predictive of both the degree to which mothers exposed their children to joint book-reading and the quality of mothers' book-reading interactions. Maternal beliefs were also positively related to children's interest in books. An unexpected finding was that reading practices were not substantially associated with oral language skills. Results are discussed in terms of the need to better understand the role of belief systems in parent—child socialization processes.