Poster #211 - The developmental relationship between inhibitory control and emotion regulation in preschoolers: A longitudinal study

• In Event: 1-005 - Poster Session 01
  In Poster Session: PS 01 Section - Social, Emotional, Personality

Integrative Statement

Extant literature has established a significant correlation between levels of inhibitory control (IC) and emotion regulation (ER) in preschoolers. These cognitive and socioemotional concepts, respectively, have implications for children’s social and academic success into adolescence. Low inhibitory control, as an executive function, is associated with high levels of negative behavior. Lack of emotion regulation can impact a child’s ability to interact socially or respond properly in emotional situations. Previous studies have failed to examine these skills’ development longitudinally to determine if they develop concurrently or whether one serves as a mechanism of development for the other. The present study examined how developing levels of IC and ER affect each other longitudinally, using data from an existing longitudinal intervention-based study (Power PATH). Preschool children (N=540) enrolled in Head Start preschools across western Alabama participated in a dual generation intervention program (PowerPATH) with assessment at three time points across two years (beginning preschool, ending preschool, and kindergarten). Standardized assessments and teacher reports were used to test inhibitory control (BRIEF; Gioia et al., 2002) and emotion regulation skills (ERC; Shields & Cicchetti, 1997). We hypothesized that across three time points inhibitory control would be a significant predictor of emotion regulation. Using Structural Equation Modeling path analysis to examine the relationship between development of IC and ER in preschool children across three time points, we found that emotion regulation and inhibitory control were significantly correlated within each time point, as expected, with IC predicting some future ER time points, but not vice versa. Findings suggest that inhibitory control and emotion regulation seem to develop concurrently, with some evidence that inhibitory control precedes the development of emotion regulation, especially with regard to the regulation of negative emotions. This has important implications for the development of both preventative interventions and treatment focused on helping children at-risk for emotion regulation challenges.

Authors

• Alayna Watson, The University of Tennessee
  Presenting Author

• Ansley Gilpin, University of Alabama
  Non-Presenting Author

• Alexandra Nancarrow, University of Alabama
  Non-Presenting Author