The Relations of Effortful Control and Ego Control to Children's Resiliency and Social Functioning

Nancy Eisenberg, Carlos Valiente, Richard Fabes, Cynthia L. Smith, Mark Reiser, Stephanie A. Shepard, Sandra Losoya, Ivanna K. Guthrie, Bridget C. Murphy, Amanda J. Cumberland

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

156 Scopus citations

Abstract

The relations of effortful control and ego control to children's (mean age = 137 months) resiliency, social status, and social competence were examined concurrently (Time 3) and over time. Adults reported on the constructs, and a behavioral measure of persistence was obtained. At Time 3, resiliency mediated the unique relations of both effortful and reactive control to social status, and effortful control directly predicted socially appropriate behavior. Negative emotionality moderated the relations of ego and effortful control to socially appropriate behavior. When levels of the variables 2 years prior were accounted for, all relations held at Time 3 except that effortful control did not predict resiliency (even though it was the stronger predictor at Time 3) and ego control directly predicted socially appropriate behavior.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)761-776
Number of pages16
JournalDevelopmental psychology
Volume39
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2003

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Demography
  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies

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