The relationship between sensory processing patterns and behavioral, emotional, and social factors in typically developing preschoolers

Sensory processing is fundamental to a child’s ability to self-regulate and interact with their environment. While the associations between sensory processing patterns (SPPs) and behavioral, emotional, and social (BES) outcomes have been well-documented in clinical populations, our understanding of the relationships in typically developing (TD) preschoolers remains limited. This study investigated the relationships between SPPs and BES outcomes in TD preschoolers. A cross-sectional design was employed with 134 TD children aged 3–5 years. Data were collected using the Sensory Profile (SP) and Preschool Behavior Checklist (PBCL). Findings revealed that greater sensitivity, avoidance, and registration difficulties were associated with higher levels of BES difficulties, reflected by higher PBCL scores. In contrast, higher sensory seeking scores were associated with fewer psychosocial difficulties. Multiple regression analyses showed that sensory avoidance was most strongly associated with behavioral problems (β = .44, p < .001), whereas sensory sensitivity showed the strongest associations with social (β = .39, p < .001) and emotional (β = .36, p < .001) problems. Registration was also significantly associated with social problems (β = .25, p < .001), while seeking showed significant inverse associations across all PBCL domains (p < .05). The results suggest that sensitivity, avoidance, and registration patterns may be associated with higher levels of BES difficulties, whereas seeking may be inversely associated with BES difficulties. The findings highlight the potential value of considering SPPs when assessing BES functioning in TD preschoolers.