Characteristics of the home environment in children with developmental delays: insights from a cross-sectional study in Türkiye

Background/aim: A stimulating home environment in early childhood plays a crucial role in fostering child development. This study aimed to evaluate the home environment of children with developmental delays and who had not received special education support in any developmental domain. Materials and methods: The study comprised of 50 preschool children with developmental delay monitored at Hacettepe University Division of Developmental Pediatrics and 70 typically developing preschool children from Ankara 29 May & imath;s State Hospital, General Pediatrics Department. Physicians and experienced child development professionals employed the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) to perform developmental assessments on each child. The characteristics of the home environment for all participants were evaluated using the Home Environment Questionnaire (HEQ), and their sociodemographic details were recorded. Results: The home stimulation scores for children with developmental delay were significantly lower compared to those for their typically developing peers (p < 0.001). Physical violence against children was reported by 34% of parents of children with developmental delays (p < 0.001). The presence of developmental delay (p < 0.001, CI 12.629-7.927), the family socioeconomic status (p = 0.002, CI 3.813-1.486), and the number of family members (p = 0.001, Cl 2.595-0.708) were significantly associated with home stimulation scores. Conclusion: Initial assessment of children with developmental delays suggest that the stimuli in their home environment are of lower quality relative to those of typically developing peers, and these children are subjected to markedly higher levels of physical violence. These results underscore the need for early childhood caretakers, public health practitioners, and other professionals to design and implement targeted interventions, particularly prioritizing low-income families living in disadvantaged environments.