Relationships, Regulation, and Early Development

Abstract

Abstract The influence of early parent–child relationships on the development of self‐regulation has yielded a rich research literature on socialization. This chapter broadens that view by discussing early relational influences on two processes relevant to regulation: developing biological systems and emerging representations of the social world. Concerning the first, research on fetal programming, developing stress neurobiology, molecular gene–environment interaction, and behavioral epigenetics underscores the influence of early adversity and the social buffering of stress, mediated by caregiving relationships, on developing reactivity and self‐regulation. Concerning the second, developmental social cognition research and studies of relationship‐based mental representations highlight the importance of social experience for developing understanding of human mental states and motivation, cooperation and fairness, and other constituents of developing self‐regulation. A discussion of the development of emotion regulation follows that emphasizes the value of a multilevel analysis of developmental processes of self‐regulation that integrates behavior, biology, representation, and relationships. Finally, directions for future research are identified.

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