学前儿童的社会情绪能力是指儿童在社交情境中，根据社会规范调节和管理自身情绪和行为，积极与他人互动、建立良好人际关系的能力的集合。我国针对学前儿童社会情绪能力的研究处于起步阶段，大多引用西方理论框架，缺乏本土化测量工具，无法全面系统捕捉我国社会文化背景下学前儿童社会情绪能力的结构内涵与特点。此外，父母教养方式是促进儿童社会化发展的关键因素，系统考察父母教养方式对学前儿童社会情绪能力的影响及机制，有助于为改善家庭教育、促进儿童全面发展提供指导。但以往相关研究缺乏追踪设计，且多集中母亲群体，对父亲作用及父母差异的探讨不足，对父母教养方式影响学前儿童社会情绪能力的内部机制关注更少。因此，本论文拟在我国文化背景下，聚焦学前儿童群体，首先解构社会情绪能力的结构内涵、编制科学的测量工具，随后使用该工具考察学前儿童社会情绪能力的特点，最后聚焦父母教养方式的影响、父母差异和儿童个体特征在其中的机制作用等一系列科学问题展开深入系统的研究。

研究一采用质性研究的方法，初步构建了我国学前儿童社会情绪能力的结构指标体系。本研究分别对47位幼儿园教师和23位学前儿童家长开展焦点小组访谈和一对一半结构化访谈，使用主题分析法对访谈文本进行编码分析，发现我国学前儿童社会情绪能力的结构可以分为6个核心主题和19个副主题，其中6个核心主题包括：自我觉察和表达、情绪和行为调节、社交主动性、共情和观点采择、人际交往技能、社交问题解决，并进一步对其具体内涵进行了解析。

研究二编制了测量工具，并使用该工具刻画了我国学前儿童社会情绪能力的基本特点和发展特点。本研究包括两个子研究，其中，研究2a基于研究一提炼出的指标框架，通过四轮施测，编制了一套适用于我国学前儿童的社会情绪能力问卷。结果发现：1) 经因素分析，学前儿童社会情绪能力的结构被调整为自我觉察和表达、情绪和行为调节、社交主动性、他人意识、社交问题解决、规则和集体意识等6个维度；2) 编制的《学前儿童社会情绪能力问卷》共包含25个题项，具有良好的信效度，满足跨儿童性别、年级、年龄及跨报告主体的测量等价性。研究2b基于该工具，首先对我国11个省(直辖市)的2282名学前儿童父母进行问卷调查，结果发现我国学前儿童社会情绪能力在人口学变量上呈现出一定的差异：1) 在儿童个体层面，女生社会情绪能力得分显著高于男生；3~4岁儿童社会情绪能力得分与4~5岁儿童差异不显著，但均显著低于5~6岁及6岁以上儿童；2) 在家庭背景层面，非独生儿童社会情绪能力得分显著高于独生儿童；生活在扩展家庭中的儿童的社会情绪能力显著低于生活在单亲或核心家庭中的儿童；家庭社会经济地位越高，儿童的社会情绪能力越高。随后使用该工具，对北京市559名学前儿童父母进行追踪研究，在间隔3个月连续追踪3次的测量中发现：儿童年龄段与测量时间点的交互作用显著，具体表现为3~4岁组儿童的社会情绪能力总分在T1到T2阶段有所提升，5~6岁组儿童的社会情绪能力总分T2到T3阶段有所提升。

研究三通过纵向研究考察了学前儿童父亲、母亲权威型和专制型教养方式对儿童社会情绪能力的影响，并探讨父母角色(即是否是主要照料者)在其中的调节作用。共有275名学前儿童的父母共同参与追踪问卷调查，结果发现，控制人口学变量后：1) 母亲权威型教养方式能显著正向预测学前儿童社会情绪能力的整体状况及自我觉察和表达、社交主动性、社交问题解决、规则和集体意识等子维度；母亲专制型教养方式能显著负向预测学前儿童的自我觉察和表达、他人意识、社交问题解决、规则和集体意识等子维度；但父亲权威型和专制型教养方式对学前儿童社会情绪能力的预测作用不显著；2) 母亲角色在母亲教养方式对学前儿童社会情绪能力的影响中的调节作用不显著，即无论母亲是否是主要照料者，母亲教养方式的上述影响均显著；3) 父亲角色在父亲专制型教养方式对学前儿童社交主动性、社交问题解决的影响中存在显著的调节作用，表现为当父亲是主要照料者时，其专制型教养方式显著负向预测儿童社交主动性、社交问题解决，反之预测作用不显著。

研究四在上述发现的基础上，深入考察了儿童气质的不同成分和社交掌握动机在父母教养方式影响其社会情绪能力中的机制作用。本研究招募了519位母亲和78位负责主要照料的父亲，采用时间序列中介分析发现：1) 儿童气质中的负向情绪性成分在父亲专制型教养方式对情绪和行为调节的影响中，以及母亲权威型、专制型教养方式对社会情绪能力的整体状况及自我觉察和表达、情绪和行为调节、他人意识、规则和集体意识等子维度的影响中起单独中介作用；2) 儿童气质中的意志控制成分在母亲权威型教养方式对社会情绪能力的整体状况及自我觉察和表达、规则和集体意识等子维度的影响中起单独中介作用；3) 意志控制和社交掌握动机在母亲权威型教养方式对社会情绪能力的整体状况及自我觉察和表达、社交主动性、他人意识、社交问题解决、规则和集体意识等子维度的影响中起链式中介作用。

研究五进一步采用质性访谈的方法，对研究三、四等量化研究结果进行验证、丰富、补充和拓展。访谈分析发现：1) 当下父母较多使用权威型教养、较少使用专制型教养，两者均对儿童社会情绪能力产生影响，且儿童的负向情绪性、意志控制等气质成分的典型特征(如情绪稳定性、专注性)和社交掌握动机在其中发挥机制作用，这验证了量化研究结论，并丰富了其动态过程和细节信息；2) 当前社会存在“男主外、女主内”“严母慈父”等多种家庭分工模式，父母在育儿行为上的差异主要源于个人性格、成长背景和教育理念等方面的不一致，相对来说主要照料者的影响更大，这对量化研究发现的父母差异现象进行了补充；3) 进一步拓展提升，提炼出父母能够帮助提升儿童社会情绪能力的有效策略，包括3个一级指标(营造支持型的家庭环境、开展丰富的家庭活动、父母做好自我反思和相互配合)和8个二级指标。

综上所述，本论文在我国社会文化背景下，聚焦学前儿童群体，厘清了学前儿童社会情绪能力的结构指标及内涵，编制了符合测量学要求的工具，具有一定的理论推动作用；采用大规模横断调查和小范围纵向追踪设计相结合的方式，丰富了我国学前儿童社会情绪能力的特点研究，进一步考察了父母典型教养方式对其的影响及机制，发现母亲和担任主要照料者角色的父亲对儿童社会情绪能力具有重要影响，并且儿童气质和社交掌握动机在上述影响中起到中介作用，这也为揭示儿童个体特征在环境因素影响其个体发展过程中的机制作用提供了充实的理论借鉴。本研究发现为我国后续开展学前儿童社会情绪能力的相关研究奠定了理论基础，提供了科学有效的工具，也为改善父母教养方式、促进学前儿童社会情绪能力发展提供了实证依据。

The social-emotional competence (SEC) of preschoolers refers to their abilities to regulate and manage their own emotion and behavior according to social norms in social situations, actively interact with others and establish positive interpersonal relationships. Research on the SEC of preschoolers in China is still in its infancy. Most studies relied on Western theoretical frameworks and especially lacked local measurement tools, making it difficult to comprehensively and systematically capture the structure and characteristics of the SEC in preschoolers within the context of Chinese social culture. Furthermore, parenting style is one of the most important factors in promoting child SEC. Systematically explore the influence of parenting styles on preschoolers’ SEC and its mechanisms, could provide efficient and scientific guidance for parents to fully exert parental roles and effectively promote the comprehensive development of children. However, previous research on the influence of parenting style on the SEC in preschoolers was less likely to use longitudinal design and has largely focused on mothers, with less attention given to role difference of parents, and there has been relatively limited exploration of the mechanisms through which they exert their influence. Based on the above-mentioned, this paper conducted an in-depth and systematic study on a series of scientific issues related to the structure, measurement, characteristics, the effect and its mechanisms of parenting style on the SEC of preschoolers within the cultural context of China.

Study 1 utilized qualitative interviews to preliminarily construct a structural index of the SEC in preschoolers in China, and analyzes its specific content. This study conducted focus group interviews and one-on-one semi-structured interviews with 47 kindergarten teachers and 23 preschoolers’ parents respectively. The structure index system of the SEC in preschoolers in China initially constructed using thematic analysis, comprises 6 core themes and 19 sub-themes. These 6 core themes include: self-awareness and self-expression, emotion and behavior regulation, social initiative, empathy and perspective-taking, interpersonal communication skills, and social problem-solving. Furthermore, a detailed analysis was conducted to further explore the specific contents of these themes.

Study 2 developed a questionnaire for measuring SEC of preschoolers, and subsequently, this tool was used to explore the fundamental and developmental characteristics of the SEC in preschoolers. This study comprises two sub-studies, Study 2a, based on the index system distilled from Study 1, conducted four rounds of testing to develop a questionnaire suitable for measuring the SEC in preschoolers. The results revealed that: 1) After factor analysis, the structure of SEC in preschoolers was adjusted into 6 dimensions: self-awareness and self-expression, emotion and behavior regulation, social initiative, others-awareness, social problem-solving, and rules and collective awareness. 2) The Preschool Children’s Social-Emotional Competence Questionnaire comprises 25 items. This questionnaire demonstrates good reliability and validity, and fulfills the measurement equivalence across children’s gender, grade and age, and across reporter. Study 2b, based on this measurement, firstly conducted a questionnaire survey among parents of 2,282 preschool children from 11 provinces (municipalities) in China. The results showed that the SEC in Chinese preschoolers exhibits certain differences across demographic variables: 1) Regarding child individual level, girls demonstrate significantly higher scores in SEC compared to boys, and the scores of children aged 3~4 years and 4~5 years were significantly lower than those children aged 5~6 years and older. 2) Regarding family background level, non-only children demonstrate significantly higher scores in SEC compared to only children; children living in extended families exhibit significantly lower levels of SEC compared to those living in single-parent or nuclear families; children from higher SES families tend to have higher levels of SEC. Subsequently, using this measurement, a follow-up study was conducted on 559 preschoolers’ parents in Beijing. Through three consecutive measurements at 3-month intervals, the findings revealed: there is a significant interaction between the age group of children and the measurement time points. Specifically, children aged 3~4 years show an increase in the overall SEC score from T1 to T2, and children aged 5~6 years show an increase in the overall SEC score from T2 to T3.

Study 3 longitudinally examined the impact of authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles of fathers and mothers on the SEC of preschoolers, it also explored the moderating role of parental roles (i.e., primary caregiver or not) in this relationship. A total of 275 parents of preschoolers participated in the longitudinal questionnaire survey. After controlling for demographic variables, the results showed that: 1) Maternal authoritative parenting style significantly positively predicts preschoolers’ SEC and self-awareness and self-expression, social initiative, social problem-solving, and rules and collective awareness of children. Maternal authoritarian parenting style significantly negatively predicts self-awareness and self-expression, others-awareness, social problem-solving, and rules and collective awareness of children. However, the predictive effects of paternal authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles on the SEC of children are not significant. 2) The role of mother does not significantly moderate the effects of maternal authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles on the SEC in children. 3) The role of father could significantly moderate the effects of paternal authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles on the SEC in children. Specifically, when father is the primary caregiver, paternal authoritarian parenting significantly negatively predicts children’s social initiative and social problem-solving; conversely, when father is not the primary caregiver, the predictive effects are not significant.

Building upon the findings of Study 3, Study 4 delved deeper into the mechanisms through which child temperament and social mastery motivation mediate the influence of parenting styles on their SEC. Firstly, this study recruited 519 mothers and 78 fathers primarily responsible for caregiving. Through time-series mediation analysis, it was found that: 1) Negative emotionality serves as a mediator in the influence of paternal authoritarian parenting style on emotion and behavior regulation, as well as maternal authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles on SEC and self-awareness and self-expression, emotion and behavior regulation, others-awareness , and rules and collective awareness. 2) Effortful control serves as a mediator in the influence of maternal authoritative parenting style on SEC and self-awareness and self-expression, rules and collective awareness. 3) Effortful control and social mastery motivation serve as chained mediators in the influence of maternal authoritative parenting style on SEC, and its components.

Study 5 further validated, enriched, supplemented, and extended the quantitative research findings of Studies 3 and 4 through qualitative interviews. Analysis of the interviews revealed: 1) Currently, parents tend to use authoritative parenting more frequently and authoritarian parenting less frequently. Both styles have an impact on preschoolers’ SEC. Additionally, typical features of child temperament components such as negative affectivity and effortful control (e.g., emotional stability, attention) and social mastery motivation play mechanistic roles in this process. This validates the conclusions of quantitative research and enriches the understanding of its dynamic processes and detailed information. 2) In contemporary society, various family division of labor models such as ‘husband working outside, wife managing household’ and ‘strict mother, kind father’ exist. Differences in parenting behaviors between parents mainly stem from inconsistencies in personal characteristics, upbringing backgrounds, and educational philosophies. Relatively speaking, the primary caregiver has a greater influence. This supplements the phenomenon of parental role differences found in quantitative research. 3) It extends and refines effective strategies that parents can employ to enhance preschoolers’ SEC, including 3 primary indicators (creating a supportive family environment, engaging in diverse family activities, and fostering parental self-reflection and cooperation) and 8 secondary indicators.

In summary, this study, conducted within the cultural context of China and focusing on preschool children, has clarified the structure of SEC and developed tools that meet measurement requirements, providing a certain degree of theoretical impetus. In addition, this study utilized longitudinal designs to enrich our understanding of the developmental characteristics of SEC in preschoolers in China. The study has examined the effects and mechanisms of typical parenting styles (authoritative and authoritarian parenting) on children’s SEC, highlighting the significant influence of mothers and fathers who serve as primary caregivers. Furthermore, it has revealed the role of individual characteristics such as temperament and social mastery motivation in this process. The findings of this paper lay a theoretical foundation and provide measurement for future research on the SEC in preschoolers in China, as well as provide empirical evidence for improving parenting styles and promoting positive development of the SEC in preschoolers.