Family Predictors оf Older Preschoolers' Interpersonal Emotional Competence

Abstract

We studied family factors of older preschoolers’ interpersonal emotional competence, including 3 components: emotional identification, empathy, and expression. Sample: 80 mother-child dyads, 38 boys and 42 girls 5—6-years-old from Saint Petersburg. More mature parenting styles (sufficiency of demands, obligations with a low degree of prohibitions and sanctions, and lack of child infantilization), well-being in the mother-child emotional interaction (positive feelings and emotions in the interaction, and the mother’s ability to influence to the child state), and actual family cohesion have a positive impact on the development of preschoolers’ interpersonal emotional competence. At the same time, compensatory mechanisms in the formation of both the cognitive and affective-behavioral components were found. Thus, the parameters of emotional identification and expression can develop better in the case when the mother gives less feedback to the child (lacks understanding of the causes of the child´s state, doesn’t show her parental feelings so clearly, and is less acceptive of her maternal role).