Family supported emotion regulation program for ages 4-6 (48-72)monthly) effect on children's problem behaviors and their parents' self-efficacy

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of a parent-supported emotion regulation program implemented with children aged 4 to 6 on their problem behaviors and on parental self-efficacy. A quasi-experimental design with a nonequivalent control group, one of the experimental models, was employed in the study. The study group consisted of 76 children aged 4 to 6 and their parents, all of whom were enrolled in kindergarten classes of primary schools located in the Üsküdar district of Istanbul during the 2023–2024 academic year. The emotion regulation program was developed based on expert opinions and pilot studies and was structured to include 16 sessions delivered over eight weeks, with two sessions per week. One experimental group received the parent-supported emotion regulation program (n=24), while another experimental group received the program without parental support (n=25). The control group (n=23) did not receive any intervention. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form and the Revised Berkeley Parenting Self-Efficacy Scale (BPSE-R) completed by parents, and the Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales (PKBS-2) completed by teachers, during both the pretest and posttest phases. The data were analyzed using normality tests, descriptive statistics, and both parametric and non-parametric inferential hypothesis tests. In the pretest phase, no statistically significant differences were found between the experimental and control groups in terms of overall PKBS-2 scores. However, in the posttest phase, significant differences emerged. Both the emotion regulation group and the parent-supported emotion regulation group scored significantly higher than the control group in the posttest. When comparing the differences between pretest and posttest scores, the posttest scores of the parent-supported group were significantly lower (i.e., showed improvement in behavior) than those of the control group. Regarding BPSE-R scores, no significant differences were found between the groups in either the pretest or posttest phases, nor were there significant changes between pretest and posttest scores within any group.The results of the study suggest that the parent-supported emotion regulation program was effective in reducing levels of problem behavior in children, although a similar effect was also observed in the control group. The program did not yield a significant impact on levels of parental self-efficacy.