Stress and Emotional-Behavioral Challenges in Preschool-Aged Children

The preschool years are a unique time of development for children, as this is the first age range in which they begin to interact with peers outside of their family. While language, cognitive and motor skills continue to develop rapidly during this period, awareness of social dynamics, peer choices and group membership also increases. Consequently, preschoolers may exhibit a wider range of social-emotional and behavioral problems. Problem behavior in preschool children can cause significant stress on parents, which in turn can impact parental responses to the child's behavior and parenting practices. Research tells us that the preschool years are a time of rapid child development as children acquire new social, emotional, cognitive, and motor skills. This can lead to an increasing variety of emotional and behavioral problems in preschool children. A significant proportion of preschool children exhibit problematic behaviors.