Boise Courtney, Knoche Lisa L
Department of Psychology, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA.
Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA.
Behav Sci (Basel). 2024 Dec 21;14(12):1232. doi: 10.3390/bs14121232.
Social-emotional competence and executive function at preschool are critical for children's school readiness. Unfortunately, young children with the dual risk of low-income status and identified developmental concerns are more likely to have lower social-emotional learning. This study examines (a) bidirectional associations between dyadic parenting behaviors, executive function, and social-emotional competence; and (b) executive function as an explanatory mechanism for the predictive relationship between specific parenting behaviors and children's social-emotional competence. Data came from 267 parents and children with identified developmental concerns attending publicly funded center-based preschools. Children's executive function was assessed by teacher-report, while parenting behaviors and children's social-emotional competence were observationally assessed. Executive function and children's social-emotional competence were bidirectionally related across the first year of preschool. Cross-lagged panel models demonstrated that executive function was not an explanatory mechanism for the relationship between parenting behaviors and children's social-emotional competence. However, higher levels of conflict displayed by parents in the fall of the first year of preschool predicted more conflict during the spring of the same year. Higher levels of conflict in the spring then predicted poorer executive function and social-emotional competence during the spring of the child's second year of preschool.
学龄前儿童的社会情感能力和执行功能对其入学准备至关重要。不幸的是，处于低收入状态且存在已确定发育问题双重风险的幼儿更有可能具备较低的社会情感学习能力。本研究考察了（a）二元养育行为、执行功能和社会情感能力之间的双向关联；以及（b）执行功能作为特定养育行为与儿童社会情感能力之间预测关系的解释机制。数据来自267名有已确定发育问题的家长和儿童，他们就读于由公共资金资助的中心幼儿园。儿童的执行功能通过教师报告进行评估，而养育行为和儿童的社会情感能力则通过观察进行评估。在学龄前的第一年，执行功能与儿童的社会情感能力呈双向关联。交叉滞后面板模型表明，执行功能不是养育行为与儿童社会情感能力之间关系的解释机制。然而，在学龄前第一年秋季家长表现出的更高水平的冲突预示着同年春季会有更多冲突。春季更高水平的冲突进而预示着儿童在学龄前第二年春季的执行功能和社会情感能力较差。
