# Associations of language barriers with very preterm children’s behavioural and socio-emotional problems across Europe

## TL;DR

Very preterm children from immigrant families with language barriers face higher behavioral and emotional problems in Europe.

## Contribution

This study introduces linguistic distance as a measurable factor linking language barriers to socio-emotional outcomes in very preterm children.

## Key findings

- Greater linguistic distance between a child's L1 and the host country's language correlates with higher behavioral and emotional problem scores.
- Language barriers significantly affect socio-emotional development in immigrant children born very preterm.
- Adjusting for social and clinical factors still shows a strong link between linguistic distance and child outcomes.

## Abstract

Very preterm birth (<32 weeks gestation, VP), immigrant background, and language barriers are all independently associated with a high risk for mental health problems in childhood, but research has neglected the long-term development of immigrant children born VP. We assessed whether behavioural and socio-emotional problems of 5-year-old children born VP growing up across different language contexts in the European Union are associated with an immigrant background and linguistic distance of families’ mother tongue (L1) to the host countries’ official languages.

Data are from a population-based cohort including all VP births in 2011/12 in 11 European countries; a total of 3,067 children were followed up at 2 and 5 years of age. Behavioural and socio-emotional difficulties were assessed using the parent-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).

Mixed-effects models showed that a larger linguistic distance of children’s L1 to the host countries’ official language was associated with higher SDQ total scores (0.02 [0.01, 0.03]), after adjusting for a wide range of social risks, biological, and perinatal clinical factors.

Language barriers in the form of linguistic distance between VP children’s L1 and countries’ official languages play a critically important role for the behavioural and socio-emotional development of immigrant children born VP.

Immigrant children born very preterm across Europe face systemic inequalities such as language barriers. Language barriers can be operationalised as a continuous linguistic distance score between children’s mother tongues and countries’ official languages. Linguistic distance plays an important role for the behavioural and socio-emotional development of immigrant children born VP. Research, policy, and practice need to better account for language barriers to increase equity in health and education.

Immigrant children born very preterm across Europe face systemic inequalities such as language barriers. Language barriers can be operationalised as a continuous linguistic distance score between children’s mother tongues and countries’ official languages. Linguistic distance plays an important role for the behavioural and socio-emotional development of immigrant children born VP. Research, policy, and practice need to better account for language barriers to increase equity in health and education.