An experimental study of the effects of autonomy support on preschoolers' self-regulation

Parents are a primary influence on the development of self-regulation skills, which are crucial for successful child outcomes. This study was a short-term experimental investigation of parent autonomy support and its effect on 3-year-old children's self-regulation (N pairs = 128; 50% fathers). Parent and child behavior was measured at baseline. Then parents were randomly assigned to complete a challenging puzzle with their child in either a highly autonomy supportive or highly controlling manner. Child behavior was measured again at posttest. Results showed that parents were able to change their behavior according to the instructions given, with parents who were lower in autonomy support at baseline benefiting most from the autonomy support training. Changes in parenting affected child behavior during the dyadic puzzle. Mothers and fathers had similar parenting quality at baseline. These results indicate that parent autonomy support is a promising target for child self-regulation interventions.