Linking Positive and Negative Affect to Socioemotional Competence
A Multi-Informant Correlational Study
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 17560251 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Shuang Bi (0000-0001-7710-1078, The Education University of Hong Kong, China), Chun Bun Lam (0000-0002-3195-7919, The Education University of Hong Kong, China, corresponding author), Kevin Kien Hoa Chung (0000-0002-8105-7361, The Education University of Hong Kong, China) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-06 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Behavioral Development (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0165-0254 • E-ISSN: 1464-0651 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/01650254261446198 |
| OpenAlex | W7160557237 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 30 |
Although positive and negative affect may play unique roles in understanding child socioemotional development, few studies have simultaneously tested the associations of both positive and negative affect with socioemotional competence among children. Therefore, this multi-informant study examined the longitudinal associations of positive and negative affect with socioemotional competence among Chinese children. On two occasions separated by about 12 months, questionnaire data were collected from 378 children (mean age at Time 1 = 8.94 years; 61% female) from 189 families in Hong Kong, China, and their class teachers. At Time 1, children rated their positive and negative affect. At Times 1 and 2, class teachers rated children’s socioemotional competence, including emotion regulation, prosocial/communication skills, peer acceptance, and relational aggression. Multilevel models revealed that positive affect predicted increases in emotion regulation, prosocial/communication skills, and peer acceptance, and that negative affect predicted increases in relational aggression. Theoretically, findings highlighted the potentially distinct contributions of positive and negative affect to Chinese children’s socioemotional development. Practically, findings pointed to the possible utility of targeting children’s positive and negative affect as means to promote children’s socioemotional competence
Longitudinal study · Multilevel model · Negative emotion · Prosocial behavior · Socioemotional selectivity theory · Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Early Childhood Education and Development
Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis
Issues and Strategies for Reducing the Length of Self‐report Scales
Missing Data Imputation versus Full Information Maximum Likelihood with Second-Level Dependencies
Social-Emotional Competence
Self-Regulation and School Readiness
Positive Emotions Broaden and Build
Emotion Regulation
Promoting Positive Youth Development Through School-Based Social and Emotional Learning Interventions
The Role of Overt Aggression, Relational Aggression, and Prosocial Behavior in the Prediction of Children's Future Social Adjustment
Cascades of infant happiness
Longitudinal associations between positive affect and relationship quality among children and adolescents
Childhood negative emotionality predicts biobehavioral dysregulation fifteen years later
Emotion regulation in daily life
I Know How You Feel”
Fit in but stand out
Relational and physical aggression in preschool‐age children
The Impact of Enhancing Students' Social and Emotional Learning
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |