Mediating effects of positive self-beliefs, social emotions, and worry on childhood socioeconomic status and prosocial and antisocial rule-breaking

Examining the impact of childhood socioeconomic status (SES) on prosocial and antisocial behaviors through positive self-beliefs, social emotions, and worry could be critical for intervention strategies. This study collected data, including sociodemographic characteristics, childhood socioeconomic status, the Oxford positive self, the Dunn Worry Questionnaire, social anxiety scale for social media users, prosocial and antisocial rule-breaking, and social-emotional expertise in eastern China. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to scrutinize pathways from childhood SES to prosocial and antisocial behaviors through positive self-beliefs, social emotions, and worry. A total of 482 adolescents, mean age was 18.58 months (SD = 1.11). Childhood SES significantly influenced prosocial and antisocial behaviors through positive self-beliefs and worry. Childhood SES significantly influenced prosocial and antisocial behaviors through social emotions, positive self-beliefs and worry. Childhood SES significantly influenced prosocial and antisocial behaviors through social emotions and worry. Childhood SES significantly influenced prosocial and antisocial behaviors through worry. The findings highlight the need for intervention programs in upper- and middle-income countries (UMICs) that aim to improve prosocial behaviors by fostering childhood SES through positive self-beliefs, social emotions, and worry.