Examining the relationship between preschool children's self-regulation skills and their parents' digital and shared parenting activities

This study, which examines the relationship between preschool children's self-regulation skills and their parents' digital and shared parenting practices, was designed using a correlational research design. The research population consists of the perceptions of parents and teachers of 324 children (143 girls and 183 boys) aged 60-72 months, attending independent preschools affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in the Kayapınar, Bağlar, and Yenişehir districts of Diyarbakır province during the 2024-2025 academic year. The study used a "Personal Information Form" to collect children's demographic information, the "Self-Regulation Skills Scale" to measure children's self-regulation skills, the "Digital Parenting Attitude Scale" to measure parents' digital attitudes, and the "Shared Parenting Scale" to measure shared parenting practices. Data obtained from the measurement tools used in the study were transferred to a software package and analyzed. The findings of the analyses revealed a relationship between children's self-regulation skills and their parents' digital and shared parenting practices. As parents' digital parenting levels increase, children's self-regulation skills tend to increase, while parents' participatory parenting practices negatively impact children's self-regulation skills. Research findings indicate a significant and positive relationship between digital parenting attitudes and their sub-dimensions and self-regulation skills, while a significant and negative relationship exists between participatory parenting actions and their sub-dimensions and self-regulation skills. The sharing behavior sub-dimension of the participatory parenting scale significantly negatively predicted the controlling behaviors sub-dimension of the self-regulation skills scale, and the social comparison sub-dimension significantly negatively predicted self-regulation skills. Furthermore, digital parenting attitudes were found to significantly positively predict self-regulation skills. The research findings are discussed with the results of research in the literature, and recommendations are presented for researchers and practitioners.