Social and emotional information processing in preschoolers: Indicator of early school success?

Abstract

To better connect emotional development and social cognition literatures, the intersection of preschoolers' emotion and behaviour response choices to hypothetical peer conflicts was examined among 305 4 ½-year-olds in private childcare and Head Start. Latent class analyses identified five subgroups of children with connections between their emotion and behaviour response choices (Happy/Passive, Sad/Socially Competent, Angry/Passive, Angry/Aggressive, Sad/Passive). Subgroup membership differed across gender and economic risk status, and was also a predictor of early school success (i.e., social competence, classroom adjustment, and academic readiness). Overall, even after accounting for the associations between known predictors of young children's behaviour and school success (i.e., gender and SES), membership in the subgroups at preschool was uniquely predictive of both concurrent and later social competence, classroom adjustment, and academic readiness. Further, preschool social competence partially mediated contributions of subgroup membership on kindergarten classroom adjustment. These findings are discussed in relation to existing social information processing and emotional development literatures, including potential implications for understanding young children's early school success.

Keywords: classroom adjustment; latent class analysis; preschool; readiness; social information processing.

Figure 1

LCA classes

Figure 2

Mediation model from LCA classes to preschool social competence and kindergarten classroom adjustment. Note. Bolded lines represent significant paths, nonbolded lines marginal paths; nonsignificant paths (all classes were allowed to predict preschool social competence and kindergarten classroom adjustment) are omitted.