Читать книгу Lifespan Development - Tara L. Kuther - Страница 417

Over the course of childhood, children make great strides in regulating their emotions and become better able to manage how they experience and display emotions. Advances in emotion regulation are influenced by cognition, executive function, theory of mind, and language development. By age 4, children can explain simple strategies for reducing emotional arousal, such as limiting sensory input (covering their eyes), talking to themselves (“It’s not scary”), or changing their goals (“I want to play blocks,” after having been excluded by children who were playing another game) (R. A. Thompson & Goodvin, 2007). Emotion regulation strategies are a response to emotions, change with age, and also influence children’s emotional experience (Eisenberg, Spinrad, & Knafo-Noam, 2015).

Parents remain important resources for emotional management in childhood. Mothers’ emotional awareness and management skills influence children’s emotional regulation skills (Crespo, Trentacosta, Aikins, & Wargo-Aikins, 2017). Parents who are responsive when children are distressed, who frame experiences for children (e.g., by acting cheery during a trip to the doctor), and who explain expectations and strategies for emotional management both model and foster emotion regulation (Sala, Pons, & Molina, 2014). In contrast, dismissive or hostile reactions to children’s emotions prevent them from learning how to manage and not be overwhelmed by their emotions (Zeman, Cassano, & Adrian, 2013). Emotion regulation skill is associated with both social competence and overall adjustment (Deneault & Ricard, 2013). Children who are able to direct their attention and distract themselves when distressed or frustrated become well-behaved students and are well liked by peers (McClelland & Cameron, 2011). Emotional regulation is also influenced by physical functioning. The Brain and Biological Influences on Development feature examines the role of sleep in emotional regulation.