The preschool period is recognized as a crucial phase for fostering the social development of children. Self-regulation during the developmental period contributes to management skills in social contexts and thus helps establish positive standards of behavior for peer relationships. Effective interventions can improve self-regulation skills. The…

This study examined autonomic profiles in preschoolers (N = 278, age = 4.7 years) and their relations to self-regulation outcomes concurrently and one year later, in kindergarten. Children's sympathetic (preejection period [PEP]) and parasympathetic activity (respiratory sinus arrythmia [RSA]) were measured at rest and during cognitive and…

The "first-grade problem" of the lack of concentration, listening, and following of instruction has been widely identified among Japanese kindergarten students. To promote their executive functioning and self-regulation to prevent this issue, we developed the Social Thinking and Academic Readiness Training (START) program. The…

Interventions targeting cognitive control processes, such as Executive Functions (EF) have recently been experimented to enhance early math skills. This pilot study explored the feasibility and effectiveness of an intervention integrating EF activities into the mathematical domain among second-grade students. One hundred and four…

Extant work on the importance of children's executive function (EF) for academic skills typically employs either direct assessments of EF skills or adult reports of children's EF behaviors. Each approach has advantages, yet few studies have examined how different EF measurement approaches distinctly relate to child outcomes. We examined how direct…

Executive Functions (EFs) are crucial top-down processes characterized by cool and hot aspects, required for goal-directed behaviour. Only a few studies evaluated and trained concurrently cool and hot EFs. Therefore, we promote a training aiming to enhance both EFs components. A total of 91 children attending the second year of kindergarten were…

The present study examined longitudinal associations between preschoolers' executive function (EF) and adult educational attainment, impulse control, and general health directly and through its cascading effects on childhood and adolescent EF using a large, national, and prospective longitudinal sample of participants. Data were drawn from the…

This study used a quasi-experimental design to test if a small scale intervention improved self-regulation with 94 kindergarten children in Taiwan. The purpose of this study was to draw on the theory of Vygotsky and examine activities that could fit into the class schedule without substantially changing the basic curriculum and would require…

The present study aimed to examine the role of phonological--semantic flexibility (PSF) in learning to read Chinese. PSF refers to a specific flexibility applied to process the dual linguistic dimensions of words (i.e., sound and meaning). A correlational study (Study 1) was conducted to determine the unique contribution of PSF to three aspects of…

Executive functioning (EF) is a key cognitive process for development. Little is known about EF in Kindergarten children at risk for developmental coordination disorder (DCD), despite this age being one of the most critical and intensive period of motor and cognitive development. In our investigation we compared EF in kindergarten children at risk…

The present study examined gender differences in kindergarten students' ability for behavioural self-regulation and executive function in East Japan. One hundred and eleven 5-year-old children were assessed on behavioural self-regulation, inhibitory, and working memory tasks (direct measurement). Children's responses to the teacher's instructions…

Theory of mind describes the ability to engage in perspective-taking, infer mental states, and predict intentions, behavior, and actions in others. Theory of mind performance is associated with foundational cognitive and socioemotional skills, including verbal ability (receptive and expressive vocabulary), executive function (inhibitory control…

Behavioral self-regulation supports young children's learning and is a strong predictor of later academic achievement. The capacity to manage one's attention and control one's behavior is commonly measured via direct assessments of executive function (EF). However, to understand how EF skills contribute to academic achievement, it is helpful to…

Behavioral self-regulation supports young children's learning and is a strong predictor of later academic achievement. The capacity to manage one's attention and control one's behavior is commonly measured via direct assessments of executive function (EF). However, to understand how EF skills contribute to academic achievement, it is helpful to…

The present study investigated gender differences in social mastery motivation, vocabulary knowledge, behavioral self-regulation, and socioemotional skills and examined the relationships among this knowledge and these skills by gender. Participants were 134 Chinese children (68 boys, M age = 3.80; 66 girls, M age = 3.89) and their parents…