Different Pathways Leading to Prosocial Behavior in Preschoolers: The Role of Parenting Style, Child Temperament, and Self-Regulatio

Orbán, Rebeka and Kiss, Botond László and Zsidó, András N. and Pohárnok, Melinda (2025) Different Pathways Leading to Prosocial Behavior in Preschoolers: The Role of Parenting Style, Child Temperament, and Self-Regulatio. NEW DIRECTIONS FOR CHILD AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT. No. 8836802. ISSN 1534-8687

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Abstract

Prosocial behavior, which encompasses actions intended to benefit others, develops rapidly during the preschool years and is shaped by both environmental and individual factors. We aimed to explore the possible relationships between parenting styles, children’s cognitive and emotional self-regulation, and their temperament in relation to prosocial behavior in preschoolers. A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 524 parents (M = 35 57 years; 488 females) who completed the survey about their children (M = 56 15 months; 263 females). The survey included measures of parenting style (Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ)), child’s self-regulation (Child Self-Regulation and Behavior Questionnaire (CSBQ)), temperament (Emotionality, Activity, Sociability Temperament Questionnaire (EAS)), and prosocial behavior (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)). According to the structural equation model, authoritarian parenting and sociability were connected to prosocial behavior. Regarding indirect pathways, authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive parenting styles; emotionality; and activity temperamental factors were associated with prosocial behavior through cognitive and emotional selfregulation. Our results indicate that parenting characterized by warmth, consistency, and reasoning, along with the absence of excessive criticism, rigidity, and inconsistency, is associated with self-regulation and prosocial behavior. Temperament is presumably linked to prosocial behavior through a high approach tendency toward social situations and low emotionality. Selfregulation may support prosocial behavior by enabling the adaptive management of emotions and attention in different situations. This integrative model may contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of prosocial behavior in context.

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