Development of Emotion Regulation Dynamics Across Early Childhood: a Multiple Time-Scale Approach

Children should become more effective at regulating emotion as they age. Longitudinal evidence of such change, however, is scarce. This study uses a multiple-time scale approach to test the hypothesis that the self-regulation of emotion—the engagement of executive processes to influence the dynamics of prepotent emotional responses—becomes more effective as children move through early childhood. Second-by-second time-series data obtained from behavioral observation of 120 children (46% female) during an 8-min frustration-eliciting wait task completed at four ages (24 months, 36 months, 48 months, 5 years) were modeled using bivariate coupled differential equation models designed to capture age-related changes in the intrinsic dynamics and bidirectional coupling of prepotent and executive processes. Results revealed indirect influences of executive processes on the intrinsic dynamics of children’s desire and frustration increased with age but also revealed complex and non-linear age-related changes in how specific aspects of the dynamic interplay between prepotent responses and executive processes influence the effectiveness of regulation at different ages. The findings illustrate the utility of using a dynamics system approach to articulate and study how specific aspects of emotion regulation change with age.