Children's executive functions predict their preferences for emotion regulation strategies

The development of emotion regulation (ER) in early childhood is shaped by the development of cognitive skills, particularly executive functions (EF). However, it remains unclear whether specific types of EFs differentially predict ER strategies across various emotional contexts. The current study aimed to explore the association between children's EFs (e.g. attentional control, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility) and children's cognitive vs. behavioural ER strategies preference for sad, fear, and anger contexts. Participants were 78 8- to 12-year-old Latine or part-Latine children (50% female, low- to middle-SES category) recruited in Southern California. Across sadness, fear, and anger contexts, greater reports of cognitive ER strategies were predicted by higher attentional control and being female. However, no significant association was found between children's EFs and their reports of behavioural ER strategies. Specifically, in events triggering sadness (as opposed to fear or anger), higher attentional control predicted a greater report of cognitive ER strategies, whereas lower attentional control predicted a greater report of behavioural ER strategies. Our findings offer valuable additional insights into the existing literature, highlighting the link between children's increased EF skills, their higher preferences for cognitive ER strategies, and their reduced reliance on behavioural ER strategies.