The Relations of Emotionality and Regulation to Preschoolers' Social Skills and Sociometric Status

• Published in: Child development Vol. 64; no. 5; pp. 1418 - 1438
• Main Authors: Eisenberg, Nancy, Fabes, Richard A., Bernzweig, Jane, Karbon, Mariss, Poulin, Rick, Hanish, Laura
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-10-1993; University of Chicago Press; Blackwell; University of Chicago Press for the Society for Research in Child Development, etc
• Subjects: Acting out; Adaptation, Psychological; Arousal; Attention; Behavior; Biological and medical sciences; Child development; Child, Preschool; Children; Children & youth; Coping; Developmental psychology; Emotion Regulation; Emotional Adjustment; Emotional Expression; Emotional intelligence; Emotionality; Emotions; Factors; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender Identity; Humans; Internal-External Control; Interpersonal Competence; Male; Mothers; Newborn. Infant; Peer Relationship; Personality Assessment; Personality Development; Popularity; Preschool Children; Preschool Education; Psychological stress; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Sex Differences; Social Behavior; Social control; Social Desirability; Social Environment; Social research; Social skills; Socialization; Sociometric Status; Sociometrics; Temperament; Human; Preschool age; Affect affectivity; Emotionality; Peer relation; Attention; Sociometry; Stress; Social development; Regulation(control); Social interaction; Social aptitude; Coping; Child
• ISSN: 0009-3920; 1467-8624
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.1993.tb02961.x

The purpose of this study was to examine the relations of emotionality (intensity and negative emotion) and regulation (coping and attentional regulation) to preschoolers' social skills (as rated by adults) and sociometric status. Teachers' ratings of children's constructive coping and attentional control were positively related to boys' social skills and peer status, whereas negative affect was negatively related. Acting out (vs. avoidant) coping and emotional intensity were negatively related to girls' and boys' social skills and boys' peer status. In addition, mothers' reports of boys' coping by seeking social support and low emotional intensity were associated with boys' positive social functioning, whereas avoidant coping was positively related to girls' rated social skills. The results are discussed in relation to research on emotion regulation and coping with emotion in interpersonal contexts.