Testing a model of parent -child relationships, parent -child joint book reading, and children\u27s emergent literacy skills

The primary goal of this study was to examine how the quality of the parent-child relationship and parenting style are related to the quality and quantity of parent-child literacy interactions and children\u27s early literacy development. Little is known about the indirect effects that the parent-child relationship may have on children\u27s acquisition of early literacy skills. As such, this research was designed to uncover ways in which the parent-child relationship may mediate or moderate children\u27s acquisition of such skills. It was hypothesized that the parent-child relationship may impact children\u27s emergent literacy skills through other variables, such as the quality of the home environment or the quality of parent-child joint book reading. It was also hypothesized that the parent-child relationship may moderate the relation between parent-child literacy interactions and children\u27s emergent literacy skills. The participants in this study were 54 mothers and their 3-year-old children (29 girls). Children were recruited from half-day early childhood education programs. Results indicate that neither the quality of mother-child joint book reading nor the home literacy environment mediates the relation between the parent-child relationship and children\u27s emergent literacy skills. The results showed that the quality of the parent-child relationship, as represented by parenting style, significantly predicted children\u27s emergent literacy development beyond the quality of mother-child joint book reading or the occurrence of home literacy activities. Findings also suggest that the relation between the quality of parent-child joint book reading and children\u27s emergent literacy skills is moderated by the quality of the parent-child relationship. Similarly, the relation between the home literacy environment and children\u27s emergent literacy skills was also moderated by the quality of the parent-child relationship