Investigation of the relationship between verbal memory and narrative skills according to socioeconomic level

This study aims to examine the relationship between verbal memory and narrative skills according to socioeconomic status (SES). A total of 84 children aged 7-9 years, 42 from high and 42 from low SES groups, were included in the study. The Turkish Early Language Development Test (TEDIL) was used to assess language development, MAIN-TR, the Turkish adaptation of the Multilingualism in Narrative Assessment Tool (MAIN-TR) was used to assess narrative skills, and the Working Memory Scale (WMS) sub-dimension of the WM sub-dimension was used to assess verbal memory (WM) skills. SES level was determined by demographic information form. The results showed that the SB scores of children in the high SES group were higher than those of children in the low SES group (p<0.001). MAIN-TR Cat Story Story Structure A and TA, Structural Complexity A and TA, Internal Situation Terms-A and Comprehension scores of the high SES group were significantly higher than those of the low SES group (p < .05 and p < .001). In the Dog Story sub-dimensions, the Comprehension score of the high SES group was significantly higher than the low SES group (p < .001). The age factor did not show a significant effect on both verbal working memory and narrative skills (p >0.05). SB was positively correlated with MAIN-TR Cat Story subscales of Story Structure-A, Structural Complexity-A, Story Structure-TA and Comprehension (p < .01). This study presented important results by revealing the effects of SES on SB and narrative skills. The findings show that children with high SES have significantly higher SB scores as well as narrative skills compared to the low SES group. This supports the fundamental role of memory in children's language and narrative skills. Our study fills the gap in the literature by addressing the relationship between SB and narrative skills in the context of SES. These findings provide important information to understand how SES affects children's language and cognitive skills and to develop intervention programmes accordingly.