Inhibitory Control Across the Preschool Years: Developmental Changes and Associations with Parenting

Sanne B. Geeraerts, Joyce J. Endendijk, Maja Deković, Jorg Huijding, Kirby Deater‐deckard, Judi Mesman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The normative developmental course of inhibitory control between 2.5 and 6.5 years, and associations with maternal and paternal sensitivity and intrusiveness were tested. The sample consisted of 383 children (52.5% boys). During four annual waves, mothers and fathers reported on their children’s inhibitory control using the Children's Behavior Questionnaire. During the first wave, mothers’ and fathers’ sensitivity and intrusiveness were observed and coded with the Emotional Availability Scales. Inhibitory control exhibited partial scalar invariance over time, and increased in a decelerating rate. For both mothers and fathers, higher levels of sensitivity were associated with a higher initial level of children's inhibitory control, whereas higher levels of intrusiveness predicted a slower increase in children's inhibitory control.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)335–350
Number of pages16
JournalChild Development
Volume92
Issue number1
Early online date7 Aug 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was supported by a European Research Council Starting Grant awarded to Judi Mesman (Project 240885). Sanne B. Geeraerts is funded through the Gravitation program of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (Consortium on Individual Development; NWO grant number 024.001.003).

Funding Information:
This research was supported by a European Research Council Starting Grant awarded to Judi Mesman (Project 240885). Sanne B. Geeraerts is funded through the Gravitation program of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (Consortium on Individual Development; NWO grant number 024.001.003).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The Authors. Child Development published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Research in Child Development

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