The women university multan

Investigating the role of Parents’ language in the development of preschool children’s Language
Learning and social Behaviour

Research Proposal

by
Laeeqa Nadeem

M.Phil. English
Roll no. 08

Email: laeeqanadeem555@gmail.com

Supervisor: Dr. Fatima Zafar Baig

Email: fatimabaig_84@wum.edu.pk
 Investigating the role of Parents’ language in the development of preschool
children’s Language Learning and social Behaviour

Introduction

Children's language development is a complicated process that is essential to their achievement,

preparedness for school, and communication abilities. Parents are considered to be a child's first
teacher since they are the main adults who regularly engage and interact with newborns. Shape a
child's reading environment and language development with enhanced verbal response and
healthy parent-child interactions. The first three years are the most demanding since they mark a
period of fast brain development and increased capacity for learning. It would be more difficult
to reach milestones as the kid matures if this crucial stage is skipped without enough interaction
and chances for language development.

Families are meant to provide for the internal needs of their members, safeguard them so they
may grow up healthy, and teach them how to deal with the "out there," serving a dual role of both
internal and exterior care. helps their members to develop a sense of family while promoting
independence (Relvas, 1996).

Evidence reveals that parents' contributions to their kids' language and behaviour development
are particularly significant and may have a significant role in their overall upbringing.

Historical Background

A child's linguistic development must be shaped by healthy parent-child contact. Although many
individual factors have been linked to language development, it is still unclear how these
elements interact with one another and how they affect language development. Few scholars
would contest the notion that parents have minimal impact on the attitudes and behaviours of
their kids. But how this impact comes about is a little more nuanced and contentious.

It is the need of the hour that relationship of parents and children’s language acquisition and
behavioural set up be discussed more vigorously to bring to light important hidden aspects of this
matter. So that the Children’s early development could become ideal. This research discusses
these relations of Parents and children and their nature in detail.

Context of Research

This research is conducted in the context of recent shift towards child's language learning and the
connection of a child's psychology to its language learning and parental influence. The recent
developments underscore the significance of this area of research. This research will be
conducted in the city of the largest province of Pakistan. As Pakistan is a closely knit society
with strong family influences, so this relationship will be interesting to investigate. Many of the
researches, earlier, discuss this phenomenon in detail but this research enables the reader to look
into matter deeply with greater understanding. How a child will develop his/her language and
attitude when he/she has conventional atmosphere to grow or when situation is a bit deviated
one. With this context in mind, we will pursue this research towards concrete findings.

Statement of Purpose

In response to importance of child and parents' relationship in pre-school years, the purpose of
the qualitative phenomenology is to explore and understand the lived experiences related to the
wellbeing of the children as well as parents in Multan, District of Pakistan. The child's attitude,
behaviour, conduct, language learning, speaking patterns and responses are being studied to give
them a proper purpose of betterment. A combined framework of Qualitative study with
observations and interviews along with quantitative analysis with questionnaire is going to be
adopted to gain reliable results and to investigate research questions thoroughly and support the
inquiry, analysis, and interpretation of the experiences of children and parents.

Research Gap

The influence of parents’ role in Language Learning and Behavioral Development in children in
Pakistan is the limited empirical research and comprehensive studies focusing specifically on the
intricate interplay between parental involvement, language acquisition, and behavioral
development within the Pakistani cultural context. While there is a wealth of global research on
the subject, there is a need to delve into the unique socio-cultural factors, linguistic diversity, and
educational practices within Pakistan and how these factors shape the parental role and its impact
on children's language learning and behavior. Insights on specialized strategies for promoting
infant development in this particular cultural context can be gained by examining this gap.

Significance of Research

Pakistan is a multicultural nation with many different languages and cultural practices.
Understanding how these elements affect children's language and behaviour might help develop
interventions and educational initiatives that are respectful to cultural norms. Early behavioural
and linguistic difficulties must be identified in order to effectively intervene and help children
who may be at risk. This study can point out areas where parental participation can have a
favourable influence on a child's development. Additionally, it is anticipated that this research
will help shape the creation of policies and initiatives aimed at enhancing Pakistan's child
development results. It can aid in educating educators, policymakers and parents on the value of
parent involvement in early childhood education. This study is significant because it also sheds
information on the function of parents in the development of language and behaviour.

Research Objectives

1. To investigate the impact of parents' language practices on children's behaviour and

communication skills development.
2. To analyze the role of parents as linguistic models and assess how their language choices and
patterns affect their children's linguistic development.
3. To analyze the impact of parents' language on the development of behavioral traits and
characteristics in children, including social interaction skills.

Research Questions

1. What is the impact of parent's language on their children’s acquisition of language skills and
behaviour development?
2. How does parents’ language behaviour affects children language acquisition and behaviour?
3. What is the influence of the language used by parents on children’s social behaviour and
conduct?
Literature Review

Relevant Research

Researchers have long been interested in how people feel about learning a new language. Many
studies in this field have adopted a social psychology viewpoint, particularly those by Gardner
and Lambert (1972) and Gardner (1985), who are still rather well-known for their investigations
into the connection between nature and numbers. Cognitive architecture and how it affects
general linguistic abilities. Other works (such as Phillips & Filmer-Sankey, 1993; Chambers,
1999; McPeak et al., 1999) take a more direct approach to this topic from the standpoint of
language acquisition and study the academic, social, historical, and pluralistic components of this
effort. Since language and attitude work together to shape culture and behaviour, attitude is
primarily a linguistic issue. Numerous studies have attempted to separate these elements, but it
may be difficult to pinpoint the precise significance of connected variables because of the
complex social framework in which attitudes are rooted.

Language and conceptual development are influenced by a variety of factors; socioeconomic

status (SES) is one of the most crucial ones since it takes into account variations in parental
views, attitudes, motives, and behaviours. Understanding the socio-contextual elements that
assist children's early language development has been the subject of a substantial amount of
study. Numerous separate elements that contribute to language development, their interactions
with one another, and their connection to language development remain unknown.

There is no question in the literature that the attitude of parents has a significant impact on the
general development of their children, despite the fact that some of these studies do not agree on
the proportional importance of particular elements (for example, the influence of speakers of the
target language). According to Hakim (2001, p. 36), stress "can affect students' understanding of
a foreign language" (Phillips & Filmer-Sankey, 1993; Barton, 1997; Chambers 1999). "A child's
attitude is primarily formed by his experiences in the world," according to Auskamp (1977, p.
126) "but this is typically achieved through explicit teaching and explicit modelling of parental
attitudes." Additionally, he stated that parental influences on linguistic attitudes might exist.
There are several more areas where the typical youngster lacks first-hand experience, and in
these areas, parents may have a significant impact on their children's attitudes. Consider your
perspective on foreigners and other nations. (1977, Oskamp, p. 126) understanding their
interactions with parents. They begin to understand in greater detail that their behavior triggers
their parents' behavior and vice versa. Additionally, they begin to better understand themselves as
being able to regulate their emotions in relation to parental demands. Because of children's
developmental changes, parents must set limits while supporting the child's autonomy without
losing their affection. A history of maternal abuse and current maternal stress are two factors that
may cause mothers to be less sensitive to their children. Additionally, in a study by Coombs-
Ronto, et al. which was based on the relationship between mothers' parenting and children's
disruptive behavior early in life, found that negative parenting problems and children's
externalizing behavior interact already in preschool to create a "negative coercive cycle" until
they enter school.

This implies that future parent-child relationships will be of higher quality since both moms and
children are involved. Father-child relationships have a significant impact on children's
wellbeing, including cognitive aptitude, scholastic performance, psychological status, and social
behaviour, according to dads. For additional information, see High cognitive and verbal abilities,
high levels of sociability and popularity with other kids and peers, self-confidence,
independence, self-control, and pro-social behaviour as traits of children with involved dads.
Boys' subsequent behaviour towards women and girls' later expectations of males will be
influenced by how dads treat their moms in the home. Effective parenting entails interacting with
kids via play and other activities, providing for them, teaching self-control, orienting them to the
outside world, fostering their independence, etc. Taking care of children requires their trust,
independence, self-control, and support, as well as their safeguarding and protection. and
generates revenue. Ronald Rohner, a psychologist and anthropologist, started working on the
parental acceptance-rejection theory (PAR theory) about 1960. He did this by researching how
families interact globally and, in particular, how kids see their parents' behaviour. Intimate adult
relationships and other key interpersonal interactions across the lifetime were now included in
the theory by the 2000s. The theory changed from being known as PAR theory to Interpersonal
Acceptance-Rejection Theory (IPAR Theory) in 2014 as a result of this change in focus ‘A well-
founded theory of socialization and lifetime development that seeks to foresee and explain the
main reasons why people are accepted and rejected by others in different circumstances across
the world.’

Recently, a lot of work has been done on the influence of parents on various aspects of a child's
personality. KA Rodriguez (2021) studied the influence of parents on a child's decision-making
abilities. C Kong (2022) analyzed the impact of parenting style on child learning in early
childhood. Similarly, RF Safwat (2014) analyzed the influence of parental interaction on child
language development. So it is a rich area of research with a lot of modern and recent work.

Theoretical Framework

The theoretical framework analyses pertinent theories based on a literature survey and explain
important words in the study as well as recommends linkages between them. The research is
supported by a solid theoretical foundation. It enables you to clearly understand, describe, and
extrapolate your results while demonstrating the significance of your thesis study.

The development of the child's habits and his language development in the preschool years are
the subjects of this research, thus it is appropriate to address both of these topics in depth with
the pertinent theories. A discussion regarding whether language acquisition tactics are
behavioural (observable), mental (unobservable), or both is sparked by a few points of view. For
instance, Weinstein and Mayer (1986) contend that learning techniques encompass both activity
and thinking, but Oxford (1989), as referenced in Ellis (1994: 531), defines the word as
"behaviour or action." Second, assuming that language acquisition techniques are behaviours,
there is dispute over the definition of behaviour. According to Stern (1983, quoted in Ellis,
1994:531), "techniques as a term refer to specific forms of observable learning behaviour."
Strategy is best saved for the general trends or overall qualities of the method utilised by the
language learner. Here, Stern characterizes the nature of strategy as being universal and
comprehensive, but Wenden (1987a: 7) conflates the two by referring to 'strategies' as specific
acts or procedures and stating that they do not correspond to a general learner approach like
reflection and hazard.

The final significant point of contention relates to students' knowledge of strategy utilization.
Some respond to this by using various terms; for instance, Seliger (1984, cited in Ellis,
1994:531) refers to abstract cognitive categories of information processing subconsciously or
unconsciously as "strategies," while another defines the term "tactics" as learning. Some
researchers, however, contend that learners adapt to new knowledge by consciously using
methods, which eventually become subconscious via repetition and self-adaptation.

Many researchers, however, resist drawing a clear difference on the subject of awareness. While
each of these arguments offers a distinct description of learning strategies, taken as a whole, they
can provide us a basic picture of what learner methods are: Learning techniques are either
behavioural, making them visible, or mental, making them invisible. To teach the target language
(TL), learning tactics can be either broad approaches or targeted activities or processes. Despite
certain subconscious behaviours in specific situations, students often are aware of the language
learning methodologies or tactics they have utilized.

The process of child development, which lasts from birth through maturity, has received little
attention for the majority of human history. The significant improvements in cognitive
functioning, language usage, and physical development that take place between childhood and
adolescence have received less attention since children are frequently seen as smaller replicas of
adults.

Early in the 20th century, interest in child development finally started to grow, although it tended
to concentrate on aberrant behaviour. Eventually, interest in other areas, such as general child
development and developmental effects, increased among scholars. The phases of a child's
development are described in more modern theories, along with the average ages at which these
milestones take place.

Social Cognitive Theory

This theory also closely investigates the cognitive processes that are also evident in the case of
child development as well as the social impacts on the individual.

The social cognitive theory (SCT) explains how personal experiences, other people's conduct,
and environmental factors are all affected by an individual's health behaviour. In order to attain
expectancies, self-efficacy, and behaviour change, SCT offers possibilities for social support via
observational learning and other forms of reinforcement.

Important SCT elements for changing a person's behaviour include:

 Self-efficacy: the conviction that one is in charge of and capable of controlling one's
behaviour.
 Behavioural competence: the capacity to comprehend and act.
 Expectations: figuring out how a behaviour change will affect things.
 Expectations: putting a price on the results of changing one's behaviour.
 Self-control: the ability to control and keep an eye on one's actions.
 Observational learning involves observing how others behave when they perform or exhibit
the desired behaviour.
 Reinforcements: Supporting rewards and incentives that stimulate behaviour modification.

Freud's Psychosexual Developmental Theory

The idea of psychoanalysis initially surfaced in Sigmund Freud's writings. Through his
therapeutic work with patients who had mental illnesses, Freud came to the conclusion that
childhood events and unconscious urges had an impact on behaviour.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Developmental Theory

The first half of the 20th century saw a strong influence of psychoanalytic thought. People
started to develop new ones based on Freud's beliefs after he encouraged and motivated them.
Among these neo-Freudians, Erik Erikson's theories are the most well-known. In order to explain
growth and change throughout the course of a lifetime, Erikson's eight-stage theory of
psychosocial development focuses on social interactions and conflicts that take place at various
stages of development.

Freud's Psychosexual Developmental Theory

The idea of psychoanalysis initially surfaced in Sigmund Freud's writings. Through his
therapeutic work with patients who had mental illnesses, Freud came to the conclusion that
childhood events and unconscious urges had an impact on behaviour. Freud believed that the
conflict between these stages might affect a person's personality and behaviour for the rest of
their life. Freud put forward one of the most well accepted theories regarding how children
develop.
Freud's psychosexual theory holds that children go through a number of developmental phases
that concentrate on various bodily pleasure centres. Conflict arises for a kid at each crucial
developmental stage.

His hypothesis states that at specific periods, libido energy is transported to various erogenous
zones. Failure to go past the period can result in fixation on this developmental stage, which,
according to Freud, can have an impact on adult behaviour.

What follows when a child completes each stage, then? What may contribute to a child's
underperformance at particular developmental stages? To create a wonderful personality, each
step must be accomplished effectively.

Conflicts can subsequently influence the behaviour of adults if they are not handled in a timely
manner.

Contrary to other child development theories that argued against personality growth and change,
Freud believed that early experiences had the greatest impact on development. Freud believed
that the personality is primarily established by the age of five.

Erikson's Psychosocial Developmental Theory

The psychoanalytic theory had an impact on the first half of the 20th century. People proceeded
to create and refine new hypotheses as a result of Freud's encouragement and inspiration. The
most well-known of these neo-Freudians is without a doubt Erik Erikson.

Erikson's theory of eight stages of psychosocial development focuses on the social interactions
and conflicts that take place at various developmental stages to explain growth and change over
the lifetime. Although there are numerous discrepancies between Erikson's and Freud's theories
of psychological development, there are some commonalities between them as well. Erikson
thought that social interaction and experience, not sexual desire, was the main factor determining
growth. This process from birth to death is explained by the hypothesis of the eight phases of
human development. People have developmental conflicts at every level, which have an impact
on their productivity and capacity to advance.
Erikson's Psychosocial Developmental Theory

Erik Erikson's psychosocial theory, in contrast to the majority of other developmental theories,
emphasises development across the lifespan. At every stage in both children and adults' lives,
developmental crises happen and act as a crucial transition. The difficulties of each level must be
successfully overcome in order to build psychological morality.

Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development

Behavioral Child Development Theories

A new school of thinking known as behaviourism started to emerge in the early 20th century and
swiftly took over psychology. According to behaviourists, psychology must only study
observable and recognised behaviour in order to be studied as a science.

Behavioral Child Development Theories

According to the behavioural approach, environmental factors may account for all human
behaviour. Behaviourists like B.F. Skinner and John B. Watson claim that association and
reinforcement are the causes of learning.

Piaget's Cognitive Developmental Theory

His cognitive theory tries to clarify and characterize the origins of thought processes and moods.
It also looks at how these mental processes affect our perception of and interactions with the
outer world.

Bowlby's Attachment Theory

Numerous studies have been conducted on how children develop socially. John Bobley proposed
one of the earliest theories of social development. Bowlby believed that a child's early
relationships with caretakers were important for their development and had an effect on their
social connections for the rest of their life.
Bandura's Social Learning Theory

Social learning theory is the work of psychologist Albert Bandura. According to Bandura,
conditioning and reinforcement processes cannot adequately account for human learning.
Bandura's theory of child development states that while observation is essential to learning, it is
not necessary for this observation to include viewing a live model.

Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory

Lev Vygotsky, a brilliant psychologist, created a fundamental theory of learning that had a
significant influence, particularly in the field of education. Both Piaget and Vygotsky thought
that children learn best when they actively participate and apply their learning in real-world
situations.

According to sociocultural theories, high-level mental skill development is the result of

interactions with peers, parents, carers, and culture as a whole. According to Vygotsky, social
interaction is the main component of learning. Through connection with others, learning is
integrated into the worldview. The aforementioned theories serve as the theoretical framework
for this research since they are all concerned with how language and children's personalities
develop.

Research Methodology

Nature of Research

The proposed research aims to investigate the intricate interplay between parents' roles and child
development, specifically focusing on language and behaviour. This study will adopt a mixed
methods approach, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to gain a
comprehensive understanding of this phenomenon. The qualitative phase will involve in-depth
interviews with parents to explore their perspectives, practices, and beliefs regarding their
influence on their child's language acquisition and personality traits. Concurrently, the
quantitative phase will employ a survey instrument to gather data from a diverse sample of
parents, enabling the identification of patterns, correlations, and statistical trends related to
parenting styles, communication patterns, and their impact on child development. By integrating
these two approaches, this research provides a holistic insight into the multifaceted relationship
between parental roles and the development of language and behavioural characteristics in
children, contributing to theoretical knowledge and practical interventions in child development.

Research Design

The research is proposed to be carried out for the period of one month with the participants. The
procedure would involve the two steps in which the first one is to carry out a focused observation
of children. This step would involve observing the language use and behavioral changes of
children when they are with parents, alone as well as when some other outsiders are around. It
would also include the observations regarding grooming in the personality of the selected
children in their early ages.

The second step is intended to proceed with the parents which is further divided into two steps.
The first step would involve a pack of questionnaire that includes validated scales for measuring
parenting styles, child language development, and behaviour (Supplementary information).
These questions would be based on our research objectives and research questions. The second
step would involve a semi-structured interview with the parents and will use open-ended
questions to delve into their beliefs, practices, and perceptions about their role in shaping their
child's language development, behaviour, and personality traits. This step is expected to enhance
the efficiency and quality of results.

Data Collection

Population

The research is based on the four independent cases, each representing a preschooler from a
different household and ranging in age from 2 to 4 years old. The age range is selected
purposively, as it is an age of developing language literacy and stimulation in behavior. These
four cases represent a larger group of children in this age range. Even if each child comes from a
different family, their similar ages serve as a basis for comparison. Due to their varied
backgrounds and experiences, this group of kids provides insightful information about how
parenting approaches interact with key developmental facets of children's behaviour and
language development. These families belonging to Multan, a city in Punjab Province in
Pakistan, are highly motivated to participate in the study and to extract out the positive results.
The parents agreed to respond positively about themselves as well as their children to the
requirements of the study.

Sampling

For this case study, families with kids between the ages of 2 and 4 will be chosen using
convenience sampling. Families in the researcher's network and the nearby community will be
approached to participate in the study due to the viability and accessibility. This non-probability
sampling technique enables the choice of families who are easily accessible and eager to offer
their ideas. The children will be directly observed while they are in their normal environments,
and information on their interactions, language use, and behavioral cues will be recorded. The
parents of the chosen children will next participate in semi-structured interviews in order to gain
insight into their parenting styles, opinions on how their child is developing linguistically, and
noticed behavioural traits. This method enables a thorough understanding of the intricate
interactions between parental responsibilities, child language development, and behaviour within
the chosen examples by including both direct observation and parental perspectives.

Data Analysis

The data will be analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively.

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