Elsevier

Academic Pediatrics

Volume 15, Issue 6, November–December 2015, Pages 651-657
Academic Pediatrics

Sleep for Preschoolers, BMI and Utilization, Reach Out and Read, Problematic Internet Use
Factors Associated With Increased Reading Frequency in Children Exposed to Reach Out and Read

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2015.08.008Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

A 2014 American Academy of Pediatrics Policy Statement on Literacy Promotion recommends providers endorse daily caregiver–child reading during health supervision visits. Reach Out and Read (ROR) is a widely used model of office-based early literacy promotion. We hypothesized that exposure to ROR and other variables such as reading as part of a bedtime routine positively correlate with caregiver–child reading frequency.

Methods

This is a cross-sectional study based on a convenience sample of caregivers at 8 ROR-Milwaukee sites, which serve predominantly low-income populations in Milwaukee. On the basis of results of previously validated questionnaires, odds ratios were calculated to determine which variables are significantly associated with caregivers' reading to children 0 to 2 (rarely), 3 to 6 (often), and 7 (daily) days per week. Random forest analysis was performed to examine relative importance of variables in predicting caregivers' reading frequency.

Results

A total of 256 caregivers were eligible for analysis; those who reported receiving ≥4 books from pediatricians read to children more days per week compared to those receiving fewer books (5.07 vs 3.61, P < .001) and were more likely to read daily (odds ratio 3.07, 95% confidence interval 1.80–5.23). Caregivers' interest in reading, number of children's books in the home, reading as part of a bedtime routine, and number of books received from pediatricians were among the most important variables in distinguishing rarely, often, and daily reading caregivers.

Conclusions

Exposure to ROR-Milwaukee's intervention is associated with increased reading frequency. Identified variables such as reading as a bedtime routine and number of children's books in the home should be targets for future literacy-promoting interventions.

Section snippets

Study Design and Setting

This is a multisite cross-sectional study based on caregivers' report. After approval by the Medical College of Wisconsin's institutional review board, the study took place from September 2013 to May 2014 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at the 8 ROR-M sites serving a predominantly low-income population in the central city. During 2014, there were 13,648 annual well-child encounters for children 0 to 5 years old across the 8 sites. Insurance coverage for patients was predominantly Medicaid (91.97%),

Participants

A total of 353 caregivers were enrolled onto the study, representing 400 individual children. Of the 400 questionnaires completed, 256 met the eligibility criteria and were included in the study analysis (Figure 2). The majority of caregivers identified as black (68.0%) or Latino (27.7%), most spoke English (85.5%) and/or Spanish (32.0%), and the majority had completed high school (72.9%). The children's ages ranged from 6 to 59 months, with similar distribution across different age groups (

Discussion

In a multisite study of ROR, we demonstrated that receiving books from pediatricians is one of the most important variables that distinguish families with frequent shared reading (>3 days per week) from those with less frequent shared reading. Additionally, our analysis showed ROR has a dose-dependent effect, with caregivers receiving ≥4 books from ROR reading more frequently to children. This supports the findings of previous ROR studies, which demonstrated increased reading frequency in

Conclusions

This study supports previous data by demonstrating increased caregiver–child reading frequency in families with more exposure to ROR. It also identifies the relative importance of variables in predicting caregiver–child reading frequency, some of which are amenable to intervention in the primary care setting. By risk stratifying the pediatric population into groups such as rarely, often, and daily readers, pediatricians can target interventions to these unique groups. Primary care pediatric

Acknowledgments

All phases of this study were supported by the Herzfeld Foundation, WE Energies, and the Davis Family Foundation. The funding sources had no involvement in study design or in data collection, analysis, or interpretation. The principal investigator of this study was Dr Earnestine Willis.

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    The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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