Children’s Behavioral Self-Regulation in Finnish Early Childhood Education and Care: Contributions of Age, Gender, and Quality Factors

Research Findings: The study examined the reliability and validity of the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders (HTKS) measure in the Finnish early childhood education and care (ECEC) context, and investigated associations between individual factors, ECEC quality factors, and children’s behavioral self-regulation. The participants were 189 Finnish children aged 5 to 6 years who completed the HTKS at two time points approximately six months apart. ECEC process quality (educator–child interactions) was assessed using the CLASS-Pre-K observation instrument, and structural quality indicators (child–educator ratio, educators’ work experience) were collected via educator questionnaires. The HTKS demonstrated strong psychometric properties, supporting its validity and reliability with Finnish children. Path modeling showed that children’s age and prior behavioral self-regulation skills predicted subsequent behavioral self-regulation, highlighting the stability of these skills. Girls exhibited higher levels of behavioral self-regulation than boys. Neither process quality nor structural quality factors showed statistically significant associations with children’s behavioral self-regulation. Practice or Policy: The findings suggest that the HTKS may be a practical tool for identifying young children with lower-level behavioral self-regulation skills in ECEC settings. They underscore the developmental stability of self-regulation and emphasize the importance of early, targeted support for children with lower initial self-regulation skills to help promote equitable developmental outcomes.