Preschool children's heart rate variability across contexts of low and
high emotional challenge correlates with their self-regulation
performance
Abstract
Heart rate variability (HRV) theoretically provides a biomarker for
self-regulation, although studies with young children offer mixed
findings regarding the relevance of emotional demands in this link. We
aimed to describe variation in children’s HRV during tasks with
relatively high and low emotional load, and to determine the relation of
HRV during these tasks to different behavioral measures of children’s
self-regulation. Electrocardiograms were recorded in 80 3 - 5-year-olds
(M = 57 months; 54% male, 47% female) while they completed a Go/No-go
task with low emotional load and an emotionally challenging Delay
Frustration task. Mean HRV was similar across these tasks, although it
increased during a between-task rest interval. Accounting for age,
gender, and caregiver education, higher HRV during both tasks, but not
during rest, correlated with children’s executive function task
performance. HRV during Delay Frustration correlated with
caregiver-reported self-regulation, whereas greater HRV withdrawal
during tasks correlated with children’s task-related negative
frustration. Children’s maintenance of HRV during emotional and
cognitive challenge may support their effective self-regulation.