Citation

Cheng F, Wang Y, Zhao J, Wu X. Child Abuse Negl. 2018; 84: 74-81.

Affiliation

Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.07.018

PMID

30064076

Abstract

The relationship between mothers' negative emotional expression and preschoolers' negative emotional regulation has been a topic of debate. Studies have confirmed the unique effect of maternal education on children's emotional regulation. Further understanding of the role of maternal educational attainment in the relationship between mothers' emotional expression and children's emotional regulation strategies will help us better explain the possible reasons for the differences in children's emotional regulation abilities. In this study, 503 Chinese mother-child dyads were recruited. The Chinese version of the Self-Expressiveness in the Family Questionnaire (SEFQ) was used to measure the mothers' negative emotional expression, and the Emotional Regulatory Strategy Questionnaire (ERQ) was used to measure the children's negative emotional regulation strategies. The results indicated that mothers' negative emotional expression was positively related to children's negative emotional regulation strategies. Moreover, maternal educational attainment moderated this relationship. The findings of the current study demonstrate the importance of mothers' educational background, providing an important supplement to and extension of previous research on family emotions.

Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Educational attainment; Maternal; Negative emotional expression; Negative emotional regulation strategies; Preschooler