The role of child gender and age in teacher-child relationship,
self-regulation, social emotions and academic achievement in preschool:
A multi-group structural equation modeling approach
Abstract
This study explored the relationships among teacher-child relationship
(TCR), self-regulation (SR), social emotions (SE), and children’s
learning of mathematics and vocabulary while considering the influence
of gender and age. Two hundred seventy children (boys = 154, girls =
116) aged 3-6 years (Mage = 59.44 months) participated across 18 classes
in three preschools. The results from multi-group structural equation
modeling (SEM) revealed significant gender differences of TCR when
predicting SR and SE. However, no significant gender differences were
observed when SR predicted mathematics and vocabulary, or SE predicted
these two. SR emerged as the most potent predictor of mathematics for
all children. Furthermore, significant age variations were identified in
TCR when predicting SR and SE and when SR and SE predicted mathematics
and vocabulary. Finally, the research discusses implications for
teachers, emphasizing the importance of tailored support for children of
different genders and age groups to enhance TCR, SR, and SE.