Early Social and Cognitive Precursors and Parental Support for Self-Regulation and Executive Function: Relations from Early Childhood into Adolescence

Development of executive functions and self-regulation, two important goals for school age children, are described in this chapter. To better understand their development, we examine the evidence for several early skills as precursors, including social communication, language, and pretend play. The potential for the quality of caregivers' early verbal input to also support these skills is described, particularly as this input occurs during early childhood. Finally, evidence is provided for the links between early precursor skills and caregiver input with school age executive functions and adolescent social competence. Evidence for these relations comes from a unique longitudinal study of 360 children and their caregivers examined in home settings from 6 months to 13 years of age. Findings highlight how skills developing in infancy and early childhood provide a foundation for executive functions and self regulation in middle childhood and early adolescence and the importance of the child's social context.