Technology use among preschool-aged children (3 to 5 years old) is increasing significantly. Most of this use occurs at home, however, there is little research that investigates how it is affecting family relations and dynamics. This comparative case study explored the social practices of mobile technology in four preschool-aged children from two…

Fear of darkness is prevalent in childhood, yet how children explain it remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate how preschoolers make sense of fear of darkness. Semi-structured interviews were conducted through Zoom with 4- to 5-year-old Russian children (n = 31; 13 girls). Reflexive thematic analysis revealed that…

To explore the effects of family functioning on problem behaviour among Chinese preschool children, 1,025 preschool parents were assessed using the family assessment device, child problem behaviour scale, and parent-child relationship scale through a random sampling method. Based on the McMaster model of family functioning and the Process Person…

Parents and siblings play a vital role in promoting and inhibiting the development of comforting behaviour -- a typical prosocial behaviour. This study aims to explore the dual mediating model of positive and negative sibling relationships between parental self-efficacy (PSE) and firstborn children's comforting behaviours. We enrolled 163…

Children's relationships with their peers have important associations with their behaviour. The current study examined children's friendships during the formative school years and hypotheses were made regarding associations between how well-liked children were by peers, the reciprocity of these friendships, and with whom friendships were made.…

The Chairs of Conflict Resolution (CoCR) is a process developed for training children to discuss their conflicts constructively so they experience win-win outcomes. The present study examines the discussion taking place during the use of CoCR with young children 4-6-years-old. The discussion between the two children proceeded in four phases: (a)…

The current study aims to clarify the temporal associations between maternal sensitivity and children's sleep problems across early childhood. This study comprised 942 Dutch mother-child dyads from the Generation R Study, a population-based prospective cohort study. Throughout early childhood, maternal sensitivity was observed in mother-child…

The aim of this study was to investigate the risk levels desired by children aged 4-5 years and their perceived status of mother monitoring. One hundred and three children aged 4-5 years were participated in the study. For the purpose of collecting data, a set of 12 drawings based on the interview method set out by the researchers and the…

In Hong Kong, play-based learning has been highlighted in the latest curriculum guide in 2017. While adopting 'child-centredness' as the core value of kindergarten education can enrich children's play experiences. However, little emphasis has been placed on how young children perceive play-based learning in the classroom. The aim of this…

The aim of this study was to examine gender stereotyping by pre-school children in selecting a picture book cover and assigning gender to animal characters in illustrations. We aimed to explore which gender children would assign to bear characters, when these are portrayed in different more or less gender stereotyped activities, occupations or…

To explore the relationships among parenting styles, children's electronic media usage (EMU) and children's problem behaviours (CPB), 1,224 preschoolers aged 3-6 years old (52.0% boys; 30.9% aged 3 years old, 34.6% aged 4 years old, 26.1% aged 5 years old, and 8.4% aged 6 years old) and their parents were enrolled in the present study by means of…

Attendance at preschool represents an important transition, as it is often here that children have their first experience with unfamiliar adults. In this context, several factors can affect children's adjustment. Two important protective factors are the attachment relationship with the teacher and the level of executive functions. We investigate…

Preschoolers' prosocial behaviours support healthy interpersonal relationships as a component of their social adjustment process. Although several studies have found links between parental marital characteristics and preschoolers' prosocial behaviours, these conclusions were divisive. Therefore, a meta-analysis was conducted to clarify the…

We investigated the dynamic relationships between children's risky play attempts in a naturalistic setting, their injury experience, and their self-control ability. To test this, we administered surveys to 862 mothers of 3- to 5-year-olds. The results showed that children who tried more diverse types of risky play experienced more injuries in…

Toddlers' sleep difficulties have mainly been investigated from the mother's point of view, despite the fact that paternal implication seems to influence young children's sleep quality. This qualitative study aims to better understand how fathers experience toddlers' sleep difficulties by examining their sleep-related cognitions and strategies…