Abstract
Many studies have suggested that the knowledge of picture books possessed by caregivers predicts their children’s language abilities, reflecting the richness of linguistic inputs in shared book reading. Previous studies have measured knowledge of picture books by asking caregivers to check the items they know from the lists of titles and authors of popular picture books (Title/Author Recognition Test). However, these studies have been conducted only in English-speaking countries. We developed a Japanese version of the Title/Author Recognition Tests to measure the picture book knowledge of Japanese caregivers. In Study 1, Japanese caregivers completed questionnaires on title/author lists that we developed and some measures related to shared book reading. The results revealed significant correlations between recognition scores and measures related to shared book reading. In addition, the score on the title list correlated with the age of the eldest child, which reflects the length of child-rearing experience. In Study 2, we compared the recognition scores of the caregivers with students of a course on childcare worker training and students with little experience of caring child. The results showed that the recognition scores varied reflecting both child-rearing experience and childcare worker training. These results suggested the validity of the recognition lists we developed. Future research is needed to investigate whether the scores on the recognition lists are related to children’s language abilities.
