Inequalities in Children’s Working Memory: Variation by Socioeconomic Disadvantage and Ethnicity

Working memory is a limited capacity system that allows the storage and manipulation of information over short time periods. It is crucial for children’s learning ability in the classroom, and for children’s educational attainment. Previously, researchers have disagreed regarding the extent to which working memory is associated with external factors, such as socioeconomic disadvantage and ethnicity. In this thesis, I investigate the associations between socioeconomic position, ethnicity and children’s working memory, and the potential causal factors between these associations.
In a systematic review, I found that children with lower socioeconomic position have worse working memory. I also found that ethnic minority children tended to have lower working memory scores, however, I could not make any definitive conclusions about this due to methodological constraints. This systematic review informed three further studies using data from a longitudinal cohort study - Born in Bradford.
In the cohort analysis, children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families had worse working memory equivalent to an age difference of 16 months, and the home learning environment did not mediate this association. Substantial variation was found in working memory by ethnic group, and children from ethnic majority backgrounds had stronger associations between disadvantage and working memory than ethnic minority groups. Finally, neither own ethnic density nor Mosque attendance were significant positive factors for ethnic minority children’s working memory.
My thesis provides evidence of an association between socioeconomic position and children’s working memory, contributing to a body of evidence demonstrating the longstanding and profound effects of social inequality on children’s development. It is one of the first studies to investigate and reveal substantial variation both across and within ethnic majority and minority groups. Future research prioritisations are to investigate the mechanisms underlying these associations, and investigate the implications of these associations for social inequalities in children’s educational attainment.