Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39294240›Full record

ArticlePediatric research2025

Language learning in the context of a global pandemic: proximal and distal factors matter.

Gerald F Giesbrecht, Marcel van de Wouw, Dana Watts, Meaghan V Perdue, Susan Graham, Beatrice P Y Lai, Lianne Tomfohr-Madsen, Catherine Lebel

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Pediatric research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Observational
  2. Examining Early Vocabulary Growth Trajectories in Late Talkers in a Low-Income Longitudinal Sample.Infancy : the official journal of the International Society on Infant Studies
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Gerald F GiesbrechtDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada. ggiesbre@ucalgary.ca.
Marcel van de WouwDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Dana WattsDepartment of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Meaghan V PerdueDepartment of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Susan GrahamOwerko Centre at the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI), Calgary, AB, Canada.
Beatrice P Y LaiDepartment of Paediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Lianne Tomfohr-MadsenDepartment of Counselling Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Catherine LebelOwerko Centre at the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI), Calgary, AB, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPublic health measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally altered the socioecological context in which children were developing.

methodsUsing Bronfenbrenner's socioecological theory, we investigate language acquisition among 2-year-old children (n = 4037) born during the pandemic. We focus on "late talkers", defined as children below the 10th percentile on the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories-III.

resultsOverall, the proportion of late talkers declined as a function of pandemic wave, with 13.0% of those born during the first wave classified as late talkers compared to 10.4% born in wave two, and 8.0% born during wave three. In sex-based analysis, we observed a 15.9% prevalence of late talking among female toddlers, which was significantly different from the norming sample. In contrast, the prevalence of late talking among male toddlers was 9.1%. Using hierarchical logistic regression to identify both proximal and distal factors associated with being a late talker, we found that male sex, lower socioeconomic status, greater screen time, receiving childcare at home, disruptions to childcare, and experiencing greater exposure to public health restrictions were associated with increased odds for being a late talker.

conclusionWe interpret the findings in relation to the need to consider the special needs of young children in disaster preparation and response. IMPACT: Two-year-old children acquiring language in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic have vocabulary size similar to historical norms. A higher-than-expected prevalence of late talkers (below the 10th percentile) was observed among females and children born during the first wave of the pandemic. Motivated by Bronfenbrenner's socioecological theory, we show that both proximal and distal environmental factors are associated with vocabulary size. Infants exposed to stricter public measures had reduced vocabulary size. The findings suggest a need to recognize the developmental needs of children as part of the public health response to emergencies.

Indexed as

COVID-19Language DevelopmentPandemicsChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansMalePrevalenceSARS-CoV-2Sex Factors

Identifiers

PMID39294240

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.