Maternal emotion socialization plays an important role in the socioemotional development of young children. However, there is a lack of research regarding the role of paternal emotion socialization...Show moreMaternal emotion socialization plays an important role in the socioemotional development of young children. However, there is a lack of research regarding the role of paternal emotion socialization and the moderating role of child factors in the relationship between parental emotion socialization and the child's socioemotional development. This study examines the relationship between parental emotion socialization and child empathy, prosocial behaviour, and externalizing problem behaviour, and whether this relationship is moderated by child gender and temperament. The sample consisted of 100 intact families with a mother, a father and their preschooler. To measure parental emotion socialization mothers and fathers were independently observed while reading a wordless emotion picture book to their child, which was designed to elicit parental comments about emotions. Child prosocial behaviour was measured during an observation task in which the child had to share raisins with his or her younger sibling. Questionnaires, filled in by both mothers and fathers, were used to measure child empathy, externalizing problem behaviour, and temperament. Results revealed that paternal emotion socialization was a positive predictor of externalizing problem behaviour of the child. Paternal emotion socialization was not associated with child empathy or prosocial behaviour. Furthermore, maternal emotion socialization was not related to child empathy, prosocial behaviour, or externalizing problem behaviour. Child gender and temperament did not moderate the relationship between parental emotion socialization and children's behaviour. This study shows that paternal emotion socialization plays a role in the development of children's externalizing problem behaviour. This stresses the importance of including fathers in future research concerning the influence of parental emotion socialization on the socioemotional development of young children.Show less
