The relationship between psychological resilience and emotion regulation among preschool left-behind children in rural China

The relationship between video games and social-emotional delay in Chinese rural preschoolers: A comparison of five types of media video games and social-emotional delay

BACKGROUND

Recent studies have revealed a negative relationship between children's digital media use and social-emotional development. However, few studies distinguish between different digital devices and the different functions they provide that may lead to different outcomes.

METHODS

This study explored the relationship between young children's time spent on various digital devices and their social-emotional delay based on a survey of 1182 preschoolers (3 to 6 years old) in rural China. Children's social-emotional delay was assessed through a validated screening tool (ASQ-SE II).

RESULTS

Children's time spent on television, computers, tablets, or smartphones was not associated with their social-emotional delay. However, their risk of social-emotional delay increased as their time spent on game consoles increased. This relationship was reflected in five of the seven behavioural areas of children's social-emotional development (i.e., self-regulation, compliance, affect, social communications, and interactions with people). Moreover, it did not vary between children with different socioeconomic statuses.

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests a possible relationship between children's social-emotional delay and video games, which might need to be paid more attention to than other media types.

The association between family functioning and problem behaviors among Chinese preschool left-behind children: the chain mediating effect of emotion regulation and psychological resilience

Objective

The family environment has a significant impact on the psychological and behavioral development of children, especially those who are left behind in preschool and experience parent-child separation at a young age. These children face a greater risk of family dysfunction, which can lead to internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors. While numerous studies have established a connection between family functioning and problem behaviors, few have explored the underlying mechanisms driving this relationship. Our study seeks to address this gap by examining how emotion regulation and psychological resilience mediate the link between family functioning and problem behavior.

Methods

The sample consisted of 940 preschool children (51.5% male, 48.5% female) with a mean age of 5.07 ± 0.80. The main guardians of the children were given the Family Assessment Device, Preschool Children's Emotion Regulation Scale, the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Preschoolers (2nd edition), and the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales to assess their family functioning, emotion regulation, psychological resilience, and problem behavior respectively.

Results

Lower family functioning was associated with more severe problem behaviors in preschool left-behind children, and emotion regulation and psychological resilience partially mediated the relationship between family functioning and problem behaviors, respectively. In addition, emotion regulation and psychological resilience were also chain mediators between family functioning and problem behaviors.

Conclusion

The study's findings highlighted the crucial role of emotional regulation and psychological resilience in the correlation between family functioning and problem behaviors. It is recommended that policymakers and educators place a high priority on the cultivation of internal psychological resources, such as emotional regulation and resilience, in preschool-aged children when designing interventions to address problem behaviors.

Association between sleep change patterns and mental health among preschoolers: The mediating role of resilience

Sleep disturbance has been recognized as an important factor influencing mental health problems in preschool children. However, no longitudinal studies have investigated the association between sleep change patterns and mental health in preschoolers or the mediating role of resilience. Here, data were collected from 1595 preschool children in 26 kindergartens in four counties in Anhui Province, China, who were followed up (T2) 1 year apart based on baseline surveys (T1). The primary caregivers of the children were asked to complete a structured questionnaire through face-to-face interviews or by completing it themselves. Pearson's correlation and linear regression were used to analyze the relationships among sleep patterns, mental health, and resilience in preschoolers. A structural equation model was used for the mediation analysis. Four patterns of sleep change were identified: persistent-low pattern (1.7%), decreasing pattern (9.8%), increasing pattern (7.3%), and persistent-high pattern (81.3%). Compared to the persistent-low pattern, the increasing pattern and persistent-high pattern were associated with emotional behavioral problems (EBPs) and anxiety. Resilience played a fully mediating role in the relationship between increasing pattern, persistent-high pattern, and EBPs. Resilience partially mediated the effects of increasing and persistent-high pattern on anxiety. More attention should be paid to sleep problems in children with increasing and persistent-high sleep patterns. Resilience is important for understanding the mechanism underlying the correlation between sleep patterns, EBPs, and anxiety. Considering the EBPs and anxiety of preschool children, early intervention for resilience should be considered.

The association between family function and sleep disturbances of preschool children in rural areas of China: a cross-sectional study

This study aimed to explore the association between family function and sleep disturbances in preschool children in rural areas of China. Caregivers of preschool children completed sociodemographic questionnaires, the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Family APGAR scale. Using sleep disturbances in children as the dependent variable, family function and other related factors as independent variables, binary logistic regression analyses were performed to examine associations between family function and sleep disturbances in children. A total of 3,636 caregivers of preschool children were enrolled in our study, and the prevalence of sleep disturbances among their preschool children was 89.4%. In our study, lower family function was associated with higher risk of sleep disturbances among preschool children. After adjusting for age (years), education level of mother, discipline attitudes of father and mother, only child status and caregivers' anxiety, the associations were statistically significant both in families of which caregivers of children are their parents or other relatives. (AOR for parents = 1.487, 95% CI:1.152-1.919, P = 0.002; AOR for other relatives = 1.963, 95% CI:1.302-2.958, P = 0.001). Our study results indicated that family function was associated with sleep disturbances in preschool children, and future high-quality cohort studies are needed to explore this topic in more detail.

Adverse Childhood Experiences, Resilience, and Emotional Problems in Young Chinese Children

Resilience plays an important role in the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and children's health. Young children are often neglected in ACEs research and suffer from the negative consequences of ACEs. However, few studies have focused on the relationship between ACEs and emotional problems in young Chinese children and the moderating and mediating effect of resilience on this relationship. This study included young children at the beginning of their kindergarten year (n = 874, 42.80 ± 4.09 months) from Wuhu City, China, to examine the mediation and moderation effects of resilience on early-life ACEs and emotional problems. Our results show a positive direct effect of ACEs on emotional problems. Furthermore, a positive indirect effect of ACEs and emotional problems on resilience was found. A moderating effect of resilience was not observed in this study. Our findings (a) highlight the significance of paying more attention to early ACEs and revealing a better understanding of the effect of resilience on ACEs at an early age and (b) indicate that age-specific interventions should be provided to enhance young children's resilience when exposed to adversity.

Positive and negative mood states mediated the effects of psychological resilience on emotional stability among high school students during the COVID-19 pandemic

This study investigated the parallel mediating effects of positive and negative mood states on the relationship between psychological resilience and emotional stability among first- through third-year senior high school students in China during the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Of 408 questionnaires distributed from April 11 to April 22, 2022, to students at a high school located in Changzhou, Jiangsu, China, 360 were completed correctly and analyzed using a cross-sectional study design. The questionnaire included items from the modified Chinese version of the Psychological Resilience Scale, the Profile of Mood States scale, and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Short Scale in Chinese, the latter to assess emotional stability. The mediating effects of mood states on the relationship between psychological resilience and emotional stability were explored by using structural equation modeling and bootstrapping methods. The results indicated that psychological resilience directly affected emotional stability but also indirectly affected emotional stability through the mediating effects of positive and negative mood states. The mediating effect of negative mood states was greater than that of positive mood states. This result differs from that of research conducted prior to the pandemic, which found that compared with the damage caused by negative moods to emotional stability, positive moods more strongly promoted emotional stability. Our findings indicate that high school officials in China should consider strengthening mental health support for students who are taking courses online during home quarantine.

Zhongyong Thinking Style and Resilience Capacity in Chinese Undergraduates: The Chain Mediating Role of Cognitive Reappraisal and Positive Affect

Previous studies have suggested that the Zhongyong thinking style (influenced by Chinese culture) is associated with psychological features. However, little is known about the direct association between Zhongyong thinking and resilience and the underlying mechanisms of this relationship in Chinese culture. The present study aimed to investigate the association between Zhongyong thinking and undergraduates' resilience and to assess whether cognitive reappraisal and positive effects mediated this association. A sample of undergraduates (n = 1,356, 70.4% female, mean age = 19 years) was recruited for this study and the participants completed the Zhongyong Thinking Style Scale (ZYTS), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), and the Resilience-11. Results indicated that the Zhongyong thinking style was positively and significantly associated with resilience. Undergraduates' resilience was affected by Zhongyong thinking partly through 3 different pathways: the mediating role of cognitive reappraisal, the mediating role of positive effect, and the mediating chain role of both cognitive reappraisal and positive effect. These findings might provide a deeper understanding of the protective factors for resilience among Chinese undergraduates.