유아의 애착유형과 정서조절 및 사회적 유능성

Attachment Styles, Emotional Regulation and Social Competence in Young Children

The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of attachment styles on social competence mediated by emotional regulation among young children. The subjects of this study were 283 mothers who had three to five year old children and it was drawn from four kindergartens located in Cheongju, Chungju, and Jecheon. Data were analyzed by factor analysis and Cronbach's α with SPSS Win program. Additionally, the theoretical model was specified and estimated based on previous literature. The model was tested through the analysis of correlation matrix in LISREL VIII package using maximum likelihood estimation. The findings of the study were as follows: 1) Young children's secure attachment style directly varied their social competence which was categorized into four dimensions including leadership, reciprocity, non-cooperation, and avoidance. The study result showed that young children with secure attachment was more likely to perform leadership in their peer relationship, and to show positive reciprocity in their interaction with peers and teachers. 2) Young children's secure attachment style, mediated by internal and external regulation of emotion, indirectly predicted their social competence. Specifically, leadership and reciprocity of social competence were indirectly explained. 3) Unlike secure attachment style, young children's insecure attachment style did not have a direct effect on their social competence. The result indicated that insecure attachment style did not explain any type of young children's social competence. 4) Despite the outcome in relation to the direct relationship between insecure attachment style and social competence, insecure relationship indirectly predicted their social competence through a mediating effect of external regulation of emotion. Insecure attachment made a young child to be not cooperative by causing difficulties in external regulation of emotion. 5) As well as external regulation, internal regulation of emotion also mediated the relationship between insecure attachment and social competence among young children. Young children's insecure attachment style increased the degree of their non-cooperation and avoidance by deteriorating ability of internal regulation of emotion.