Examining the characteristics of behavioural, cognitive and emotional aspects of self-regulation and their associations with academic achievement among Chinese preschool children

Self-regulation is an important determinant of children’s concurrent and long-term developmental outcomes. In recent decades, research has consistently provided robust evidence regarding its associations with academic achievements. However, less or even no research has attempted to explore different aspects of self-regulation (including behavioural, cognitive and emotional) in a single study. The current study aimed to provide a comprehensive profile of a sample of Chinese children’s behavioural, cognitive and emotional self-regulation by investigating their characteristics in relation to gender and age, examining their associations with numeracy and literacy outcomes, and testing the moderating effects of age and gender on these associations. Results showed that girls outperformed boys in behavioural and emotional self-regulation, while these advantages only emerged at later stages during preschool. Although K2 children were older than K1 children, they failed to show any advantages on behavioural and emotional self-regulation. A closer inspection revealed different developmental trajectories of girls’ and boys’ self-regulation. Moreover, all aspects of self-regulation uniquely and significantly contributed to Chinese children’s numeracy and literacy scores. Neither age nor gender moderated these associations. Chinese children’s characteristics of self-regulation in terms of gender differences and developmental patterns were discussed in the context of the wider literature. The findings also emphasised the significance of self-regulation in preschoolers’ academic outcomes. Implications and limitations of the current study were discussed.