Neighbourhood greenspace and children's trajectories of self-regulation: Findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study

Self-regulation in childhood is associated with multiple short- and long-term outcomes, including academic achievement, and physical and mental health. The literature to date suggests several individual and family factors that can influence children's development of self-regulation. However, the role of the wider context, particularly the wider physical context, remains less clear. In the present study, we investigated the association of neighbourhood greenspace quantity—a key physical environment factor—with children's self-regulation, using data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS). We modelled the trajectories of independence and emotional dysregulation of 13,774 children across the ages of three, five, and seven years, using growth curve modelling. Models accounted for neighbourhood air pollution and deprivation, urbanicity, home physical environment, family background, maternal education and depression, and child-level covariates. After full adjustment, some aspects of the home physical environment were associated with children's self-regulation: damp and condensation and secondhand smoke were associated with higher levels of emotional dysregulation. We did not find an association of neighbourhood greenspace quantity with either aspect of self-regulation in children. On the whole, child- and family-level covariates best explained children's differences in independence and emotional dysregulation