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The aim of the present study was to develop and provide a preliminary evaluation of a social-skills-based early intervention program specifically designed to assist extremely inhibited preschoolers. Participants were a sample of n522 extremely inhibited preschool-aged children, who were randomly assigned to either the Social Skills Facilitated Play (SST) or Waitlist Control (WLC) condition. As compared to wait-list controls, extremely inhibited children who participated in the SSTfacilitated play program sessions demonstrated a significantly greater post-intervention decrease in observed socially wary behaviours and a significantly greater increase in social and socially competent behaviours at preschool. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of developing and refining early intervention programs for extremely inhibited young children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the present study was to explore the social behaviours of inhibited children in familiar social contexts, including: (1) free play with peers at preschool and (2) social activities at home and in the community. The initial participants were N=248 preschool children between the ages of 42 and 66 months. From this initial data, two smaller groups of inhibited (N=12) and uninhibited comparison (N=12) children were identified. These children were observed during free play at preschool and parents completed daily logs of children's social activities outside of school. Among the findings, inhibited children were observed to display more reticent (on looking, unoccupied) and anxious behaviours during free play preschool than uninhibited children. As well, inhibited children participated less in structured social activities outside school and were more likely to engage in dyadic play at home with a single friend as compared to their uninhibited counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parental supportiveness and protective overcontrol and preschoolers’ parasympathetic regulation were examined as predictors of temperamental inhibition, social wariness, and internalizing problems. Lower baseline vagal tone and weaker vagal suppression were expected to mark poorer dispositional self-regulatory capacity, leaving children more susceptible to the influence of parental socialization. Less supportive mothers had preschoolers with more internalizing problems. One interaction between baseline vagal tone and maternal protective overcontrol, predicting social wariness, conformed to the moderation hypothesis. Conversely, vagal suppression moderated several links between paternal socialization and children’s anxious difficulties in the expected pattern. There were more links between mothers’ self-reported parenting and child outcomes than were noted for direct observations of maternal behavior, whereas the opposite tended to be true for fathers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The central goal of this study was to explore how childrearing contexts might moderate relations between parenting styles and mothers' parental beliefs and emotional responses. Design. Participants were 76 mothers of children (41 boys, 35 girls) ranging in age from 30 to 70 months. Mothers completed a global measure of parenting styles (authoritarian, authoritative). Self-reports of parental beliefs (parental goals, attributions) and emotional responses (angry, embarrassed, happy) were assessed in response to hypothetical vignettes depicting a variety of children's behaviors (aggression, misbehavior, shyness, prosocial behavior). Results. In situations depicting children's negative behaviors, authoritarian mothers were less focused on empathic goals and attributed child aggression and misbehaviors to less external sources than their more authoritative counterparts. Authoritarian mothers were also more likely to respond with greater anger and embarrassment across all childrearing scenarios. Conclusions. Results suggest that authoritarian and authoritative mothers differ in their affective response patterns consistently across childrearing contexts, but that more challenging childrearing situations accentuate differences in the cognitive reactions of authoritative versus authoritarian mothers. Implications for understanding how general parenting styles may be translated into specific parental responses are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the present study was to examine the associations between different dimensions of self-perceptions and academic achievement in Chinese children. Participants were 604 children in Grades 4-7 attending primary and middle schools in mainland China (342 boys, 262 girls; M age = 11.25 years). Measures of children's self-perceptions and academic achievement were collected via self-reports and school records at two time points over one academic year. Results from cross-lagged panel analysis indicated that after controlling for the effects of gender, grade, and stabilities, Time 1 perceived scholastic competence positively predicted Time 2 academic achievement (β = .08, p < .05), and Time 1 academic achievement predicted Time 2 perceived scholastic competence (β = .10, p < .05). Time 1 perceived athletic competence negatively predicted Time 2 academic achievement (β = -.08, p < .01). The findings provide evidence that self-perceptions have different facets and are differently associated with academic achievement and emphasize the reciprocal predictive relations between perceived scholastic competence and academic achievement and the negative impact of perceived athletic competence self-perception on academic achievement. The implications of these results are discussed in the context of self-development and academic performance within Chinese culture, as well as their educational implications for school practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Introduction: The goals of this study were to: (1) adapt and validate a measure of aloneliness ( Solitude and Aloneliness Scale; SolAS) for use among Indonesian adolescents; (2) examine the associations between aloneliness and indices of well-being in this unique developmental and cultural context; and (3) explore possible grade and gender effects., Methods: Participants were Indonesian adolescents aged 11-18 years ( M  = 14.13 years, SD  = 1.62; 58.51% girls) who completed self-report assessments of the adapted SolAS (newly created Indonesian translation), as well as indices of adjustment (e.g., well-being, basic psychological need satisfaction)., Results: Among the results, the Indonesian version of the SolAS demonstrated good psychometric properties (e.g., factor structure, good internal reliability) and initial evidence of validity (e.g., significant negative correlations with measures of psychological well-being and basic psychological needs satisfaction). Girls reported higher levels of aloneliness than boys, but no significant grade differences emerged., Conclusions: The SolAS evidenced good psychometric properties and evidence of validity in a sample of Indonesian adolescents, suggesting it is desirable for cross-cultural research., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

The goals of this study were to examine maternal beliefs about the primary benefits and costs of their children's time spent with friends, and to explore child age and gender differences in these beliefs. Participants were N = 512 mothers (M childage  = 10.18 years; 11% ethnic minority). Open-ended responses to questions about the benefits and costs were coded and analysed, with results indicating that mothers consider opportunities for social skills and social-cognitive development a primary benefit of spending time with friends. Negative friend influence was the most commonly cited cost of friendship. Child age was associated with a number of maternal beliefs (e.g., mothers of adolescents were more likely than mothers of young children to report intimacy as a benefit), but child gender was not. Findings highlight the importance of considering child age in studies of maternal beliefs about friendship and set the stage for future research in this area., (© 2023 The British Psychological Society.)

Introduction: Solitude represents an important context for emerging adults' well-being; but to date, little is known about how emerging adults spend their time alone. The goals of this study were to: (1) describe and characterize solitary activities among emerging adults attending university; (2) examine links between solitary activities and indices of adjustment; and (3) explore the moderating role of affinity for solitude in these associations., Methods: Participants were N = 1798 university students aged 18-25 years (M age  = 19.73, SD = 1.46; 59.7% female) who completed assessments of how/why they spend time alone and indices of psychosocial adjustment (e.g., well-being, psychological distress, loneliness, and aloneliness)., Results: Emerging adults who spent time alone predominantly thinking reported poor adjustment outcomes (i.e., higher loneliness and psychological distress, and lower well-being) and dissatisfaction with solitude, whereas those who engaged in active leisure activities or passive technology use while alone reported lower psychological distress and higher satisfaction with solitude. The negative implications of doing nothing were not attenuated at higher levels of affinity for solitude., Discussion: These findings suggest that some solitary activities are more beneficial than others., (© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Personality published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Emerging adults seek solitude because of different underlying motivational and emotional processes. The current short-term longitudinal study aimed to: (1) identify subgroups of socially withdrawn emerging adults characterized by different motivations for solitude (shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and affect (positive, negative); and (2) compare these subgroups in terms of indices of internalizing difficulties and life-satisfaction. Participants were N = 348 university students ( M age = 21.85 years, SD = 3.84) from Italy, who completed online questionnaires at two-time points separated by three months. Results from a latent profile analysis (LPA) suggested three distinct subgroups characterized by different social withdrawal motivations (i.e., shy, unsociable, and socially avoidant), as well as a non-withdrawn subgroup (characterized by low social withdrawal motivations, low negative affect, and high positive affect). Among the results, the socially avoidant subgroup reported the highest levels of social anxiety, whereas the avoidant and shy subgroups reported the highest loneliness and lowest life satisfaction. The unsociable subgroup appeared to be the most well-adjusted subgroup of socially withdrawn emerging adults and reported similar levels of life satisfaction as the non-withdrawn subgroup. Our findings confirmed the heterogeneity of emerging adults' experiences of solitude, with different motivations for social withdrawal appearing to confer a differential risk for maladjustment.

Despite anxiety being a prevalent mental health problem in children, little data exist on the pervasiveness and levels of anxiety symptoms in kindergarteners. Data from the Early Development Instrument, a teacher-completed, population-level measure of child development, were collected across Canada from 2004 to 2015. The final analytic sample consisted of 974,319 children of whom 2.6% were classified as "highly anxious". Compared to children who exhibited "few to none" anxious behaviors, highly anxious children were more likely to be male, have English/French as a second language, and have a special needs designation. Furthermore, compared with their less anxious peers, highly anxious children had between 3.5 and 6.1 higher odds of scoring below the 10 th percentile cut-off in physical, social, language/cognitive and communication domains. Our findings suggest that anxious behaviors are related to children's overall health and illustrate the consistency and extensiveness of anxiety at a very young age among Canadian children., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

The primary aim of the present study was to examine the potential moderating role of screen time in the links between shyness and indices of socio-emotional adjustment in young Chinese children. Participants were N = 211 children (112 boys, 99 girls) ages 43-66 months ( M = 58.84 months, SD = 5.32) recruited from two public kindergartens in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Mothers completed assessments of children's shyness and screen time, and both mothers and teachers completed measures of indices of children's socio-emotional functioning (prosocial, internalizing problems, learning problems). Among the results, shyness was positively associated with internalizing problems and negatively associated with prosocial behavior, whereas screen time was positively associated with internalizing problems. However, several significant shyness × screen time interaction effects were observed. The pattern of these results consistently revealed that at higher levels of screen time, links between shyness and indices of socio-emotional difficulties were exacerbated. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of shyness and screen time in early childhood.

The aim of the present study was to compare the relations between subtypes of social withdrawal and socio-emotional adjustment in Chinese children and early adolescents. Participants included 571 children (M age  = 9.62 years) and 345 adolescents M age  = 12.12 years) in mainland China. Social withdrawal subtypes (i.e., shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and indices of socio-emotional adjustment were assessed via self-reports, peer nominations, and teacher ratings. Shyness tended to be more strongly associated with emotional maladjustment in early adolescence, whereas unsociability was more strongly associated with socio-emotional difficulties in childhood. For social avoidance, associations with indices of negative adjustment (i.e., social anxiety, emotional symptoms, peer problems) were stronger in childhood, however, associations with indices of positive adjustment (i.e., life satisfaction, well-being) were stronger in early adolescence., (© 2023 Society for Research on Adolescence.)

Parental Reflective Functioning (PRF) refers to parents' ability to understand their children's behavior in light of underlying mental states such as thoughts, desires, and intentions. This study aimed to investigate whether maternal meta-emotion philosophies (i.e., emotion coaching, emotion dismissing) mediated the relation between maternal RF and child emotion regulation (ER). Additionally, children's genders and ages were examined as moderators of the associations between maternal RF and maternal meta-emotion philosophies. The sample comprises 667 Chinese mothers of children aged 4-6 years. Mothers completed questionnaires assessing their reflective functioning, emotion coaching and dismissing, and child emotion regulation. Results indicated both a direct link between maternal RF and child emotion regulation, as well as indirect pathways mediated by emotion coaching and dismissing. A child's gender and age also moderated the relations between maternal RF and meta-emotion philosophies. Specifically, the negative association between maternal pre-mentalizing modes and emotion coaching was stronger for mothers of girls than boys; whereas the negative association between maternal certainty of mental states and emotion dismissing, as well as the positive association between maternal interest and curiosity and emotion coaching were both stronger for mothers of younger children than older children. The findings suggest that emotion coaching and dismissing mediate the relation between maternal PRF and the emotion regulation of children.

Shyness is a temperamental trait that shares considerable conceptual overlap with aspects of internalizing problems, creating difficulties in operationalizing and assessing these two constructs and their association. This study addresses these issues by employing network analyses. Participants were, white, N = 555 children (M age  = 52.45 months, SD = 15.96, 55% girls) followed longitudinally over 4 years (2016-2010) in Norway. Teachers rated child shyness and assessed children's internalizing symptoms. Results suggest that two behavioral shyness traits were the most central aspects of shyness. The centrality of these aspects was robust across age. The most influential symptom connecting internalizing symptoms with shyness was "unhappy." Shyness became more differentiated with development, and associations between anxiety-related symptoms and shyness increased as children entered formal schooling., (© 2023 The Authors. Child Development published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Research in Child Development.)

The goal of this review was to provide an overview of how solitude has been operationally defined and measured since the year 2000 in psychological studies of children, adolescents, and emerging adults. After applying exclusionary criteria, our review of the extant literature identified n  = 19 empirical studies, which we grouped into three broad methodological categories: (1) experiments/manipulations ( n  = 5); (2) retrospective reports ( n  = 7); and (3) experience sampling measures (experience sampling methodology; n  = 7). A review of these studies indicated considerable variation in how solitude is operationalized and measured. There is also a notable lack of studies measuring solitude in childhood. Implications for 'what matters' when assessing solitude are discussed, and we provide a series of suggestions for helping this research area move forward., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 McVarnock, Cheng, Polakova and Coplan.)

This 3-year longitudinal study explored the mediating role of depressive symptoms in the relations between interparental conflict (IPC) and preference-for-solitude (PFS). Participants were 1,039 Chinese adolescents (53.9% boys) between 11 and 15 years old ( M T1 = 12.37, SD = .58). Data were collected at three time points and included maternal reports of IPC, adolescent reports of depressive symptoms, peer nominations of PFS. Results from multilevel mediation analyses indicated that at both the between- and within-person levels, statistically significant indirect effects were found for depressive symptoms as a mediator of the relation between IPC and PFS. That is, elevated IPC predicted adolescent increased depressive symptoms, which in turn, were associated with heightened PFS. As well, within a given adolescent, higher frequencies of IPC were a significant positive predictor of depressive symptoms for that adolescent, and in turn, changes in depressive symptoms were positively associated with changes in PFS over time. These findings highlight the influence of IPC on early adolescents' maladaptive outcomes over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Individuals who are socially avoidant actively remove themselves from opportunities for social interaction and have a strong desire for solitude. Although social avoidance is associated with a host of adjustment difficulties, its neural substrates remain under-explored. To address this gap, we conducted an exploratory study to compare electroencephalography (EEG) frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) scores during processing emotional facial stimuli in socially avoidant and non-withdrawn comparison individuals. From an original sample of N = 384 undergraduate students, 25 avoidant and 27 comparison individuals were identified. For this subset of participants, EEG modulations and self-reported experience ratings during a picture processing task were assessed. Among the results, the socially avoidant group's ratings of positive stimuli were significantly lower than the non-withdrawn comparison group. The socially avoidant group also had significantly lower FAA scores in response to positive stimuli than the comparison group. Further, asymmetry scores of the comparison group in the positive conditions were higher than in the negative and neutral conditions. However, there were no significant differences between these three conditions in the socially avoidant group. Our results suggest that socially avoidant individuals may eschew interpersonal relationships because of a relatively greater right hemisphere cortical activity, which may contribute to a withdrawal motivation when confronted with negative emotional stimuli in social contexts., Competing Interests: Declarations of interest None., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Popularity has been empirically linked to psychological and several indices of school adjustment outcomes during childhood and early adolescence. Yet, best friend popularity in relation to the adjustment outcomes remains unclear, especially in more interdependent-oriented cultures. To address this gap, this study applied the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) to simultaneously considering whether, and how, the popularity of youth (actor effects) and their best friends (partner effects) contribute uniquely to psychological well-being and school adjustment outcomes, after controlling for social preference. Age and gender differences were also examined. Participants were 162 same-gender best friend dyads (81 boys, M age  = 11.24 years, SD = 1.18) from Shanghai, P.R. China. Among the results, both youth's own and their best friends' popularity were positively related to self-esteem and school attitudes, and negatively related to depressive symptoms. In addition, results from multi-group analyses revealed both actor and partner effects did not vary across gender. Finally, exploratory analyses showed that only actor effects varied across age for the associations between popularity and self-esteem and school attitudes. These findings highlight the important role of the best friend's popularity in promoting Chinese youth's experiences of psychological and school adjustment., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The sudden outbreak of COVID-19 and consequent quarantine policies have substantially altered family lives worldwide. Potential associations between parental negative emotional expressions towards the pandemic, family factors, and child psychological adjustment remain under-explored. Accordingly, the goal of the present study was to examine the relation between maternal panic over COVID-19 and children's depressive symptoms, with a focus on the potential moderating role of children's daily routines during a period of strict quarantine. Participants were N  = 1,589 children ( M age = 13.13 years, SD  = 1.54; 50.7% girls) and their mothers, from Zhengzhou, Henan Province, in Mainland China. Data were collected in April of 2020, when school closure policies were in effect. Mothers reported their panic over COVID-19 and children reported their depressive symptoms and daily routines during the quarantine period. Overall, results indicated a significant positive association between maternal panic over COVID-19 and child depressive symptoms. However, maintaining regular daily routines was found to be a significant moderator of this association, with higher levels of daily routines attenuating the link between maternal panic reactions and child psychological distress (i.e., buffering effect). The results highlight the protective role of regular daily routines in promoting psychological adjustment among Chinese children during the COVID-19 pandemic., Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-022-04129-0., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article., (© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2022, Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.)

The present study explored the role of parenting styles as mediating mechanisms in the link between marital conflict and Chinese children's internalizing problems. Participants were N = 1269 families (mothers, fathers, and children) from Shanghai, P. R. China. Multisource assessments were employed at three time points. Mothers and fathers reported their marital conflict and parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian) and teachers and children reported on children's internalizing problems. Results from the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) showed significant actor and partner effects for associations between marital conflict and parenting styles. After controlling for internalizing problems at Time 1, only maternal authoritarian parenting continued to mediate the relations between mothers' reported marital conflict and change in children's internalizing problems over time. This research provides valuable information about how important aspects of parenting influence the relations between marital conflict and internalizing problems among Chinese children., (© 2021 Family Process Institute.)

In this study, we examined how technology impacts adolescents' perceptions of, and affective responses to solitude, as well as how adolescents' own motivations for solitude (shyness, affinity for aloneness) were related to these reactions. Participants were N  = 437 adolescents (297 girls; M age  = 16.15 years, standard deviation ( SD ) = .50) who were presented with a series of hypothetical vignettes asking them to imagine themselves in the context of pure solitude (alone in their room with the door closed), as well as being physically alone but engaged in increasing levels of virtual social engagement, including passive (e.g., watching videos, scrolling, but no direct social engagement), active (e.g., texting), and audio-visual (e.g., Facetime) technology use. Following each vignette, participants reported their perceptions of being alone and positive/negative affective responses. We also measured general motivations for solitude (shyness, affinity for aloneness). Among the results, adolescents perceived themselves as less alone in vignettes depicting increasing virtual social engagement. Affective benefits of increased virtual engagement were also found (e.g., less loneliness/boredom/sadness, greater social connection/contentment). However, these effects were moderated by solitude motivations, with different patterns evident as a function of participant shyness and affinity for aloneness. Findings highlight the importance of considering the nature of adolescents' technology use when alone, as well as motivations for solitude, when considering links between solitude and well-being., (© The Author(s) 2022.)

Social withdrawal is the behavioral tendency to remove oneself from social situations - a tendency that often contributes to reductions in individuals' mental health. The current study evaluated the links between different motivations for social withdrawal (shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and indices of psychosocial adjustment in a Norwegian sample of emerging adults. Participants were N =  194 Norwegian university students who completed self-report measures of life satisfaction, loneliness, and depressive symptoms, as well as withdrawal motivations. Among the results, a newly translated version of the Social Preference Scale-Revised (SPS-R) was validated for use in Norway. Findings showed that shyness was uniquely and positively associated with loneliness and depressive symptoms, as well as lower life satisfaction, whereas social avoidance was positively associated with depressive symptoms. Unsociability was uniquely linked to lower levels of loneliness and depressive symptoms. Findings provide novel information about the psychosocial correlates of social withdrawal motivations during emerging adulthood in the under-explored cultural context of Norway. Understanding nuances in the correlates of different motivations may aid in the development of culturally and developmentally sensitive interventions.

This study assessed young children's attributions about different subtypes of hypothetical socially withdrawn peers. Participants were N  = 114 (56% boys, M age = 60.53 months, SD  = 7.58) children attending urban public kindergartens in Mendoza, Argentina. Children were presented with vignettes describing hypothetical shy, unsociable, aggressive, and socially competent peers, and were asked a series of questions to assess their attributions toward each behavior. The results indicated that Argentine children characterized hypothetical unsociable peers as behaving with greater intentionality and lesser social motivations than shy children. No differences were found between the unsociable and shy hypothetical peers regarding the attributions of sympathy, affiliative preference, negative impact and social standing in the class. These findings provide some of the first evidence about Argentine children understanding of social withdrawal. Results are discussed in terms of the possible cultural meanings and implications of these behaviors.

Preferring to spend time alone (for any reason) has been empirically linked to symptoms of internalizing problems among Chinese children and early adolescents. However, little is known about the implications of affinity for solitude (i.e., an enjoyment of solitude) in China. Moreover, it remains unclear how affinity for solitude and depressive symptoms development simultaneously in early adolescence. To address these gaps, this study examined the longitudinal and parallel associations between affinity for solitude and depressive symptoms among Chinese early adolescents. Participants were 853 adolescents (48.4% female; M age  = 14.65 years, SD = 0.54) from mainland China followed over three years from Grade 7 to Grade 9. Assessments of affinity for solitude and depressive symptoms were obtained each year via adolescent self-reports. Among the findings, results from parallel latent growth modeling suggested that higher initial levels of affinity for solitude in Grade7 negatively predicted the slope of adolescents' depressive symptoms. This indicates that higher levels of affinity for solitude in Grade 7 predicted a slower increase in adolescents' depressive symptoms levels over three years. Implications are discussed that consider the adaptive mechanism of affinity for solitude among Chinese adolescents in the development of depressive symptoms., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Shyness in childhood has been linked to socio-emotional difficulties such as anxiety, depression, and loneliness. On the contrary, positivity (i.e., a personal tendency to see oneself, life, and future in a positive light) has been described as a protective factor. Given the challenges experienced by children during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g., closure of school and confinement), we aimed to test the potential protective role of positivity and how it may link child shyness and indices of internalizing problems (i.e., anxiety, depression, loneliness) during the first wave of the pandemic. Participants were N  = 236 children ( M age = 9.25 years, SD  = 1.20) from Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom, the three worst-hit countries in Europe when the data were collected (April-June, 2020). Children completed online self-evaluation scales to assess temperamental shyness, positivity, and indices of internalizing problems during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results from a multivariate regression analysis revealed significant interaction effects between shyness and positivity in the prediction of outcome variables. Follow-up simple slope analyses indicated that shyness was positively related to depression only among children with lower levels of positivity. The study highlights the role of children's positivity in buffering the pernicious link between shyness and their negative feelings during the pandemic. The practical implications of these findings are discussed.

The goal of this study is to explore normative beliefs about social withdrawal during adolescence. Participants were N = 419 adolescents (M age  = 16.13 years), who completed measures of normative beliefs about social withdrawal and their own social withdrawal (shyness, unsociability). Among the results, adolescents reported greater overall acceptance of unsociability compared to shyness, however, some gender differences also emerged. Specifically, adolescents were more accepting of unsociability when depicted by hypothetical females, and more accepting of shyness when depicted by hypothetical males. Participant social withdrawal was associated with greater acceptance of socially withdrawn behaviors in others. These findings provide a first look at normative beliefs about social withdrawal during a developmentally critical age period for this construct., (© 2021 Society for Research on Adolescence.)

Family lives have been changed dramatically due to the stay-at-home orders implemented during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. A variety of factors serve to increase the risk for children and adolescents in developing mental health issues during the prolonged stay-at-home period. The primary aim of this study was to examine a complex conceptual model linking daily routines, parent-child conflict, and indices of psychological maladjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic in a large sample of Chinese children and adolescents. Participants were N = 1,594 children and adolescents (50.6% girls; M age = 13.13, SD age = 1.54) and their mothers, from Zhengzhou in Mainland China. Multisource assessments include youth self-reports of loneliness, depressive symptoms, and perceived conflict with parents during the stay-at-home period, as well as maternal reports of their child's daily routines during this time. Among the results, parent-child conflict mediated the relations between daily routines and indices of psychological maladjustment, such that a lack of routine predicted greater parent-child conflict, which in turn was associated with higher levels of loneliness and symptoms of depression. Further, results from multiple group analyses revealed that associations between daily routines and maladjustment were stronger among boys than girls-as well as stronger among primary school children than middle school adolescents. Findings highlighted the importance of maintaining regular routines for children's and adolescents' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The goal of the present study was to examine the moderating effect of emotion regulation in the longitudinal relations between rejection sensitivity and indices of adjustment among Chinese children. Participants were N  = 590 children ( M age = 11.25 years, SD  = 1.33) attending public elementary and middle schools in Shanghai, P.R. China. Measures of anxious rejection sensitivity and socio-emotional functioning were collected via self-reports and peer nominations. Among the results, rejection sensitivity significantly predicted higher levels of later internalizing problems. Moreover, emotion regulation significantly moderated (i.e. buffering effect) the relations between rejection sensitivity and later peer and emotional difficulties. The current findings suggest that rejection sensitivity poses developmental risk over time, but emotion regulation may serve as a protective factor for Chinese youth. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of rejection sensitivity and emotion regulation in Chinese culture.

The present study explored the role of adaptive and maladaptive parenting practices as moderators in the relations between child shyness and internalizing problems (depressive symptoms, loneliness, low self-worth) in Mainland China. Participants were N = 1,066 third- to eighth-grade students (499 boys; M age = 11.73 years, SD = 21.75) attending six public elementary and junior high schools in Shanghai, P. R. China. Multisource assessments were employed. Children provided self-reports of shyness and internalizing problems, mothers and fathers provided ratings of their adaptive (warmth, reasoning, autonomy) and maladaptive (physical hostility, verbal hostility, punishment) parenting practices, and teacher-rated children's internalizing problem. The results indicated that the relations between shyness and internalizing problems were attenuated among children whose parents were rated higher in adaptive parenting. However, maladaptive parenting did not significantly moderate these associations. The findings underscore the importance of considering the meaning and implication of parenting in Chinese culture. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The present study examined the longitudinal relations between child perceptions of parental autonomy-support and peer preference in mainland China. Participants were N = 758 children (50.8% boys; M age = 10.78 years, SD = 1.03 at Wave 1; M age = 11.72 years, SD = 1.11 at Wave 2; M age = 12.65 years, SD = 0.95 at Wave 3) from elementary and middle schools in Shanghai, P.R. China. Children were followed over three years from Grades 4-6 to Grades 6-8. Each year, children reported their perceived maternal/paternal autonomy-support and peer preference (being well-liked among peers) was measured via peer nominations. Among the results, peer preference positively predicted later perceptions of maternal and paternal autonomy-supportive parenting, whereas autonomy-supportive parenting did not significantly predict later peer preference. Results are discussed in terms of the interactions between parental autonomy-supportive parenting and children's peer relationships in Chinese culture.

Adolescence is a developmental period when spending time alone becomes particularly important. The aim of this study was to explore adolescents' experiences of solitude, with a focus on the implications of both spending too much time alone-as well as not enough time alone. Participants were N = 869 adolescents (15-19 years of age, M = 16.14, SD = 0.50), who completed a series of self report measures assessing time spent alone, activities while alone, social motivations (shyness, sociability), affect, and the recently introduced construct of aloneliness (i.e., negative feeling that arise from the perception that one is not getting enough time in solitude). Among the results, person-oriented analyses provided evidence of distinct subgroups of socially withdrawn adolescents (e.g., shy-withdrawn, unsociable, socially avoidant) as well as an alonely group (high aloneliness, low time alone). There was also preliminary support for the notion that solitary activity activities that are intrinsically motivated may be particularly effective at satisfying the need for solitude (and thereby reducing feelings of aloneliness). Taken together, these results highlight the importance of considering the implications of getting both too much-as well as not enough solitude for adolescents' well-being.

The present study explored the role of emotion regulation and emotion lability/negativity as a moderator in the relation between child social avoidance and social adjustment (i.e., interpersonal skills, asocial behavior, peer exclusion) in Chinese culture. Participants were N = 194 children (102 boys, 92 girls, M age = 70.82 months, SD = 5.40) recruited from nine classrooms in two public kindergartens in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Multi-source assessments were employed with mothers rating children's social avoidance and teachers rating children's emotion regulation, emotion lability/negativity and social adjustment outcomes. The results indicated that the relations between social avoidance and social adjustment difficulties were more negative among children lower in emotion regulation, but not significant for children with higher emotion regulation. In contrast, the relations between social avoidance and social adjustment difficulties were more positive among children higher in emotion lability/negativity, but not significant for children with lower emotion lability/negativity. This study informs us about how emotion regulation and emotion lability/negativity are jointly associated with socially avoidant children's development. As well, the findings highlight the importance of considering the meaning and implication of social avoidance in Chinese culture., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Zhu, Xiao, Hipson, Yan, Coplan and Li.)

Although shy children have been described as less empathetic than their more sociable peers, this may be due to a performance rather than a competence deficit. The aim of this study was to explore the moderating role of shyness in the association between empathic feelings and empathic-related reactions. Participants were 212 preschoolers (M age  = 58.32 months, SD = 10.72). Children provided self-reports of empathetic feelings, parents rated child shyness and empathic behaviours (e.g., reparative behaviours), and teachers assessed indices of socio-emotional functioning (e.g., prosocial behaviours). Results revealed interaction effects between empathic feelings and shyness in the prediction of outcome variables. Among children with lower levels of shyness, empathy rated by children was positively related to empathetic and reparative behaviours (rated by parents) and prosocial behaviours (rated by teachers). At higher levels of shyness, these relations were attenuated. These results can be interpreted to suggest that although shy children may not differ from their more sociable counterparts in experiencing empathy, they seem to be less likely to act empathically., (© 2020 The British Psychological Society.)

Temperamental shyness in childhood is theorized to be an important contributor for adolescent personality. However, empirical evidence for such pathways is scarce. Using longitudinal data (N = 939 children, 51% boys) across 17 years, the aim of this study was to examine how shyness development throughout childhood predicted personality traits in adolescence, and the role of peers in these associations. Results from piecewise latent growth curve modeling showed early shyness levels to predict lower emotional stability and openness in adolescence, whereas early shyness levels and growth across childhood predicted lower extraversion. Peer problems in early adolescence accounted for these associations. This study is the first to demonstrate the role of childhood shyness and peer relations for adolescents' personality development., (© 2019 Society for Research on Adolescence.)

Introduction: This study examined three different types of Chinese children and adolescents' perceptions of psychologically controlling parenting (love withdrawal, guilt induction, and shaming), their cognitive appraisals of such parenting, and their depressive symptoms. Specifically, the moderating role of children's cognitive appraisal on the association between each type of psychologically controlling parenting and children's depressive symptoms was assessed. Child age and gender effects were also explored., Methods: Children (n = 992, M age  = 10.23 years) and adolescents (n = 427, M age  = 13.56 years) in Shanghai, China, reported on their parents' engagement in love withdrawal, guilt induction, and shaming practices, their appraisals of how much they thought their parents engaged in each of these parenting practices for their (the children's) own good, and depressive symptoms., Results: Moderated multiple regressions revealed that parental love withdrawal, guilt induction, and shaming were associated with more depressive symptoms, which were buffered by children's positive interpretations. Moreover, the moderating effects of positive parenting interpretations were stronger for adolescents than for younger children, but no gender differences in the moderation effects were found., Conclusions: Overall, our findings revealed the critical role of child cognitive appraisals in the effects of parenting practices on child outcomes and highlighted the importance of examining the meaning and function of different dimensions of psychological control within a specific cultural context. Important developmental differences in the role of these cognitive appraisals and the effects of specific parenting practices were also identified., (Copyright © 2019 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study evaluates a model linking shyness, aspects of peer relations, and internalizing problems among young adolescents in the People's Republic of China. Participants were 547 young adolescents from Shanghai, China (46% boys; M age  = 10.35 years, SD = 0.77 years) who completed peer nominations of shyness, rejection, and victimization, and self-report measures of loneliness, depression, and friendship support. Analyses demonstrated that peer difficulties (rejection, victimization) mediated the associations between shyness and internalizing problems. However, moderated mediation analyses revealed a protective effect for highly supportive friendships, especially for boys. Findings highlight the importance of considering different types of peer experiences in studies of shy young adolescents and are discussed in terms of importance to theory and intervention in China and elsewhere., (© 2018 Society for Research on Adolescence.)

The goal of the present study was to empirically examine different conceptual mechanisms previously postulated to underlie the development of social avoidance in childhood. Participants were N = 601 children (321 boys, 280 girls) attending elementary schools (M age  = 10.21 years) and middle schools (M age  = 12.77 years) in Shanghai, P.R. China. Measures of motivations for social withdrawal (shyness, unsociability, social avoidance) and socio-emotional adjustment were collected using self-reports and peer nominations at two time-points separated by 9 months. Results from cross-lagged panel analyses indicated that: (1) social avoidance and symptoms of social anxiety were not reciprocally related over time; (2) Time 1 social avoidance predicted incremental change in Time 2 peer problems (whereas Time 1 peer problems did not predict incremental change in Time 2 social avoidance); and (3) Time 1 symptoms of depression significantly predicted incremental change in Time 2 social avoidance (whereas Time 1 social avoidance did not predict incremental change in Time 2 symptoms of depression). These results provide evidence in support of depressive symptoms (but not symptoms of social anxiety or peer problems) as a salient predictor of social avoidance. Results are discussed in terms of the development and implications of social avoidance in Chinese culture.

The goal of this study was to explore the moderating role of perceived parental psychological control in the links between shyness and socio-emotional adjustment in Chinese adolescents. Participants were N = 462 Grade 7 and 8 Chinese adolescents (246 boys, Mage = 13.42 years, SD = 8 months) recruited from four randomly selected public schools in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Participants completed peer assessment measures of shyness and peer victimization, sociometric nominations of peer rejection, and self-report measures of loneliness, depression, and perceived parental psychological control. Among the results, shyness was positively associated with loneliness, depressive symptoms, and peer rejection among adolescents who perceived their parents as higher in psychological control, but no significant associations were found among adolescents who perceived lower levels of parental psychological control. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of parenting practices perpetuating adjustment problems among shy adolescents in urban China., (Copyright © 2018 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The purpose of this study was to provide additional psychometric support for the Preference for Solitary Play Interview (PSPI) and to examine the associations between self-reported preference for solitary play and indices of adjustment in early childhood. Participants were N = 340 children attending kindergarten and grade 1. Children completed the PSPI, and teachers provided assessments of children's socio-emotional and school adjustment. In support of the validity of the PSPI, preference for solitary play was positively associated with asocial behaviours. Further, preference for solitary play displayed an indirect (but not direct) association with peer exclusion via asocial behaviours. Findings are discussed in terms of the social and behavioural implications of preference for solitary play in early childhood. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Children who spend more time alone are at increased risk of adjustment difficulties. However, some individuals desire to spend time alone because of an appreciation for solitude. A preference for solitude is not associated with negative adjustment in adults and older youth. What does this study add? This study is among the first to examine self-reported preference for solitary in early childhood. Preference for solitude may not be related to emotional or school difficulties in young children. However, a heightened display of solitary behaviours may still evoke negative responses from peers., (© 2018 The British Psychological Society.)

Anxiety disorders are common among young children, with earlier onset typically associated with greater severity and persistence. A stable behaviorally inhibited (BI) temperament and subsequent shyness and social withdrawal (SW) place children at increased risk of developing anxiety disorders, particularly social anxiety. In this Future Directions article, we briefly review developmental and clinical research and theory that point to parenting and peer interactions as key moderators of both the stability of BI/SW and risk for later anxiety, and we describe existing interventions that address early BI/SW and/or anxiety disorders in young children. We recommend that future research on early intervention to disrupt the trajectory of anxiety in children at risk (a) be informed by both developmental science and clinical research, (b) incorporate multiple levels of analysis (including both individual and contextual factors), (c) examine mediators that move us closer to understanding how and why treatments work, (d) be developed with the end goal of dissemination, (e) examine moderators of outcome toward the goal of treatment efficiency, (f) consider transdiagnostic or modular approaches, (g) integrate technology, and (h) consider cultural norms regarding BI/SW/anxiety and parenting., ((c) examine mediators that move us closer to understanding how and why treatments work, (d) be developed with the end goal of dissemination, (e) examine moderators of outcome toward the goal of treatment efficiency, (f) consider transdiagnostic or modular approaches, (g) integrate technology, and (h) consider cultural norms regarding BI/SW/anxiety and parenting.)

The goal of the current study was to examine the complex links among anxious solitude, classroom climate, engagement, achievement, and gender. In particular, drawing upon the differential susceptibility hypothesis (Belsky, 1997), we investigated if children high in anxious solitude were particularly sensitive and responsive to the classroom environment. Participants were N = 712 children in Grade 3, drawn from the National Institute of Child and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development data set. Classroom climate and engagement were assessed using the Classroom Observation Scale (NICHD, 1998). Teachers completed the Teacher Report Form (Achenbach, 1991) as a measure of anxious solitude and the Academic Rating Scale (NICHD, 2010) as a measure of achievement. Hypothesized associations among variables were tested by way of a moderated-mediation model. Among the results, engagement was found to mediate the relation between classroom climate and achievement. In addition, anxious solitude and gender were found to moderate the relation between classroom climate and engagement. Support for the differential susceptibility hypothesis was found, suggesting that children high in anxious solitude may be more reactive (both positively and negatively) to elements of the classroom environment. In addition, gender differences were observed, indicating that boys may be more responsive to the classroom environment as compared with girls. Implications for future research and educational policies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record, ((c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).)

This study explored the longitudinal relations among peer victimization, depression, and academic achievement in Chinese primary school students. Participants were N = 945 fourth-grade students (485 boys, 460 girls; M age  = 10.16 years, SD = 2 months) attending elementary schools in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Three waves of data on peer victimization, depression, and academic achievement were collected from peer nominations, self-reports, and school records, respectively. The results indicated that peer victimization had both direct and indirect effects on later depression and academic achievement. Depression also had both direct and indirect negative effects on later academic achievement, but demonstrated only an indirect effect on later peer victimization. Finally, academic achievement had both direct and indirect negative effects on later peer victimization and depression. The findings show that there are cross-cultural similarities and differences in the various transactions that exist among peer victimization, depression, and academic achievement. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Peer victimization directly and indirectly relates to depression and academic achievement. Depression directly and indirectly relates to academic achievement. Academic achievement directly and indirectly relates to depression. What the present study adds? A developmental cascade approach was used to assess the interrelations among peer victimization, depression, and academic achievement. Academic achievement mediates the relation between peer victimization and depression. Depression is related to peer victimization through academic achievement. Academic achievement directly and indirectly relates to peer victimization. Academic achievement is related to depression through peer victimization., (© 2017 The British Psychological Society.)

Considerable evidence has accumulated supporting transactional influences between early childhood behavioral inhibition (BI), parent-child and child-peer relationships, and the development of anxiety disorders in adolescence and adulthood. Drawing from this literature, the Turtle Program was designed to treat children high in BI by intervening at the level of both parents and peers. In this pilot study, we sought to determine whether benefits of participating in the Turtle Program extended to children's classrooms in the form of increased positive social interactions with peers. Forty inhibited children (42-60 months) and their parent(s) were randomized to either the Turtle Program ( n = 18) or a waitlist control group (WLC; n = 22). The Turtle Program involved 8 weeks of concurrent parent and child treatment. Trained research assistants, blind to treatment condition, coded participants' social interactions with peers during free play at each child's preschool at the beginning and end of treatment. Teachers unaware of group assignment also provided reports of social behaviors at these time points. Reliable change index scores revealed that both Turtle Program and WLC participants experienced relatively high rates of reliable increases in observed peer play interactions from pre- to post-treatment (73.3% and 42.1% respectively). Additionally, Turtle Program participants experienced high rates of reliable increase in observed initiations to peers (73.3%) as well as a moderate degree of reliable decrease in teacher-reported displays of fear/anxiety (33.3%). These data provide preliminary, but promising, evidence that increases in children's social behaviors as a result of participation in the Turtle Program generalize to their preschool classrooms., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of early intervention for anxiety in preschoolers through parent-education. The current study evaluated a six-session early intervention program for preschoolers at high risk of anxiety disorders in which a standard educational program for parents was supplemented by direct training of social skills to the children., Methods: Seventy-two children aged 3-5 years were selected based on high behavioural inhibition levels and concurrently having a parent with high emotional distress. Families were randomly assigned to either the intervention group, which consisted of six parent-education group sessions and six child social skills training sessions, or waitlist. After six months, families on waitlist were offered treatment consisting of parent-education only., Results: Relative to waitlist, children in the combined condition showed significantly fewer clinician-rated anxiety disorders and diagnostic severity and maternal (but not paternal) reported anxiety symptoms and life interference at six months. Mothers also reported less overprotection. These gains were maintained at 12-month follow-up. Parent only education following waitlist produced similar improvements among children. Quasi-experimental comparison between combined and parent-only interventions indicated greater reductions from combined intervention according to clinician reports, but no significant differences on maternal reports., Conclusions: Results suggest that this brief early intervention program for preschoolers with both parent and child components significantly reduces risk and disorder in vulnerable children. The inclusion of a child component might have the potential to increase effects over parent-only intervention. However, future support for this conclusion through long-term, randomised controlled trials is needed., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study examined the underlying processes and conditions that contribute to the school adjustment of shy children in Turkey, where children's interpersonal relationships in social settings and academic achievement are highly emphasized. First, we examined the unique mediating roles of children's feelings of social anxiety, depressive symptoms, and loneliness in the associations between shyness and indices of school outcomes (academic achievement and school liking/avoidance). Second, we explored the moderating role of children's peer acceptance in these associations. Fourth- and fifth-grade children (N = 599; M age  = 10.11 years, SD = 0.65; 48% girls) provided information on shyness, social anxiety, depressive symptoms, loneliness, and school liking/avoidance. Head teachers in each classroom reported on students' academic performance. The peer nomination method was used to assess children's peer relationships. Results revealed that when children displayed shy behaviours, they reported more depressive symptoms that were, in turn, associated with poorer academic performance, less school liking, and higher school avoidance. Moreover, shyness negatively predicted school liking at low levels of peer acceptance, suggesting that difficulties in peer relationships increased shy children's risk of school dissatisfaction. Overall, our findings support the importance of the interpersonal relationship context for children's adjustment within the Turkish cultural context. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Shy children have difficulties initiating and maintaining social interactions, which put them at risk for a wide range of socio-emotional difficulties. Shy children have poor academic performance and experience school adjustment difficulties in North America. What does this study add? Shyness is an important risk factor for poorer academic performance and adjustment among children in Turkey. The association between shyness and difficulties at school is explained by children's experience of depressive symptoms. Difficulties with peer relationships increase shy children's risk of school dissatisfaction., (© 2016 The British Psychological Society.)

Although childhood shyness has been associated with school-adjustment difficulties in contemporary research in China, the conceptual mechanisms that may underlie these relations remain underinvestigated. The goal of this study was to examine a complex theoretical model that explicates the roles of both peer preference and teacher-child relationships in the links between shyness and school adjustment in Chinese children. Participants were N = 1,275 3rd- through 7th-grade students (637 boys, 638 girls; Mage = 10.78 years, SD = 1.55) attending public primary and secondary schools in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Measures of shyness, peer preference, teacher-child relationships, and aspects of school adjustment were obtained from multiple source, including peer nominations, child self-reports, teacher ratings, and school records. Results from mediation and moderated mediation analyses demonstrated that (a) shyness indirectly predicted greater internalizing problems and poorer academic achievement through its negative association with peer preference and (b) these indirect effects were moderated by teacher-child relationships, such that the negative association between shyness and peer reference was attenuated among children with higher quality of teacher-child relationships. Results are discussed in terms of the roles of peers and teachers in the links between shyness and school adjustment and their educational implications. (PsycINFO Database Record, ((c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).)

The goal of this study was to explore associations among maternal agreeableness, child temperament (i.e., emotion dysregulation), and children's social adjustment at school. Participants were 146 children in kindergarten and Grade 1 (76 girls; M age = 67.78 months, SD = 10.81 months). Mothers provided ratings of their own agreeableness and their child's temperament, and teachers assessed indices of children's socioemotional functioning at school. Among the results, maternal agreeableness moderated associations between child dysregulation and aspects of adjustment at school. Specifically, at higher levels of maternal agreeableness, the relations between child dysregulation and both anxiety with peers and their prosocial behavior were attenuated. Overall, the results suggest that maternal agreeableness may serve as a protective factor for dysregulated children. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

The present study investigated the potential protective role of components of emotion knowledge (i.e., emotion recognition, situation knowledge) in the links between young children's shyness and indices of socio-emotional functioning. Participants were n = 163 children (82 boys and 81 girls) aged 23-77 months (M = 53.29, SD = 14.48), recruited from preschools in Italy. Parents provided ratings of child shyness and teachers rated children's socio-emotional functioning at preschool (i.e., social competence, anxiety-withdrawal, peer rejection). Children were also interviewed to assess their abilities to recognize facial emotional expressions and identify situations that affect emotions. Among the results, shyness was positively related to anxiety-withdrawal and peer rejection. In addition, emotion recognition was found to significantly moderate the links between shyness and preschool socio-emotional functioning, appearing to serve a buffering role. For example, at lower levels of emotion recognition, shyness was positively associated with both anxiety-withdrawal and rejection by peers, but at higher levels of emotion recognition, these associations were attenuated. Results are discussed in terms of the protective role of emotion recognition in promoting shy children's positive socio-emotional functioning within the classroom context., (© 2016 The British Psychological Society.)

The authors' goals were to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Child Social Preference Scale (CSPS; R. J. Coplan, K. Prakash, K. O'Neil, & M. Armer, 2004) and examine the links between both shyness and unsociability and indices of socioemotional functioning in young Chinese children. Participants included of two samples recruited from kindergarten classes in two public schools in Shanghai, China. Both samples included children 3-5 years old (Sample 1: n = 350, Mage = 4.72 years, SD = 0.58 years; Sample 2: n = 129, Mage = 4.40 years, SD = 0.58 years). In both samples, mothers rated children's social withdrawal using the newly created Chinese version of the CSPS, and in Sample 2, teachers also provided ratings of socioemotional functioning. Consistent with previous findings from other cultures, results from factor analyses suggested a 2-factor model for the CSPS (shyness and unsociability) among young children in China. In contrast to findings from North America, child shyness and unsociability were associated with socioemotional difficulties in kindergarten. Some gender differences were also noted. Results are discussed in terms of the assessment and implications of social withdrawal in early childhood in China.