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Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
Published on: February 11, 2017
A computerized task for investigating the relation between attentional and emotional processes in children
Beverly J Wilson1, Douglas Derryberry, Rose Kroeker
1Seattle Pacific University, Department of Graduate Psychology, Seattle, WA 98119-1997, USA. bjwilson@spu.edu
The Journal of Genetic Psychology
|July 25, 2007
Summary
This study introduces the Children's Attentional Shifting Task (CAST) to assess attention shifting in children. The CAST effectively measures emotion regulation and predicts academic performance, particularly in shifting attention from negative stimuli.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Child Psychiatry
Background:
- Shifting attention is crucial for emotion regulation and academic success.
- Existing tasks may not adequately assess attentional shifting in young children, especially those with behavioral challenges.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce and validate the Children's Attentional Shifting Task (CAST).
- To examine the developmental appropriateness and reliability of the CAST.
- To explore the relationship between attentional shifting, emotion regulation, and academic performance.
Main Methods:
- Development of the Children's Attentional Shifting Task (CAST).
- Testing the CAST with kindergarten and 1st-grade children, including those with social and conduct problems.
- Correlational analyses linking CAST performance to teacher and parent ratings.
Main Results:
- The CAST is suitable for young children, showing no issues with fatigue or loss of interest.
- Children's ability to shift attention away from negative stimuli correlated with teacher-rated attention shifting and parent-reported emotion regulation.
- Improved ability to disengage from negative affect predicted better academic performance.
Conclusions:
- The CAST is a promising tool for assessing attentional shifting in children.
- Attentional shifting, particularly away from negative affect, is linked to better emotion regulation and academic outcomes.
- The CAST has potential applications in clinical and educational settings for identifying and supporting children's cognitive and emotional development.
