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Intrinsic And Extrinsic Regulation Of Young Children’s Frustration: A Person- Specific, Dynamic Approach
Xutong Zhang, Meng Chen, Pamela M. Cole, Lisa M. Gatzke- Kopp, Erika S. Lunkenheimer, Kristin A. Buss, and Nilam Ram.
Young children may draw on both intrinsic physiological systems and extrinsic caregiver support to manage frustration. While regulation is often conceptualized as feedback-control processes, there has been limited empirical evidence on how they unfold in real time. Taking a person-specific, dynamic network approach, we examined whether parasympathetic changes and maternal responsiveness serve as active regulators that effectively dampen children’s regulatory demands (reflected in sympathetic arousal and challenging behaviors) on a moment-to-moment basis during a frustration challenge. Data from 139 mother-child dyads (30–60 months; 48% female; 94% White; data collected June 2017–December 2019 in central Pennsylvania, U.S.) revealed that parasympathetic responses can function as real-time regulators through both dynamic increases and decreases across children; physiological regulation was related to better effortful control (standardized coefficient β = .22). Parental regulation primarily modulated challenging behaviors and was less evident among children with greater negative affectivity and externalizing risks (βs = −.19 and −.22). Findings demonstrate how children’s self-regulation emerges from heterogeneous, dynamic systems where intrinsic and extrinsic processes operate to maintain homeostasis. By linking micro-level regulation dynamics with children’s emotional and behavioral characteristics, the findings further highlight the value of capturing active, unfolding regulation patterns for understanding early functioning strengths and risks.
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Zhang, X., Chen, M., Cole, P. M., Gatzke-Kopp, L. M., Lunkenheimer, E. S., Buss, K. A., & Ram, N. (2026). Intrinsic and extrinsic regulation of young children’s frustration: A person-specific, dynamic approach. Child Development, aacag201. https://doi.org/10.1093/chidev/aacag201
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