Öfke/kızgınlık eğilimi, kendini denetleme becerisi ve anne duyarlılığının okul öncesi dönem Türk çocuklarının duygu düzenleme becerilerine etkileri

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of child temperamental characteristics and parenting on Turkish preschoolers? emotion regulation functioning. Specifically, the joint and multiplicative effects of dispositional anger, effortful control and maternal responsiveness were examined in relation to children?s emotion regulation outcomes. The sample consisted of 118 children between the ages of three to six, their mothers and preschool teachers. Children?s dispositional characteristics and maternal responsiveness were assessed in a laboratory session. Dispositional anger and effortful control were measured through behavioral batteries and maternal responsiveness was observed through mother-child interactions. Children?s emotion regulation functioning was measured through teacher-rated Emotion Regulation Checklist. The hierarchical regression analyses revealed that among three predictors, only maternal responsiveness contributed to the prediction of emotion lability, the scale of the ERC that taps emotion dysregulation. Contrary to expectations, none of the two-way interactions between dispositional anger, effortful control and maternal responsiveness significantly predicted the outcomes. Different from US findings, emotion regulatory effect of effortful control for dispositional anger was not supported. The results of mediational analyses did not reveal a mediating role for effortful control but rather a common-cause model where maternal responsiveness promoted effortful control and buffered against emotion dysregulation. Overall, the present study sheds light on the importance of not only promoting supportive parenting practices such as sensitivity, acceptance and cooperation but also designing interventions that teach parents strategies to reduce or prevent emotion regulatory problems and promote children?s attentional and behavioral control.