SELF-REGULATION, EMOTION EXPRESSION & CLASSROOM ...

such as family problems, lower parental education, and behavioral or emotional
problems (Bronson et al., 1995). Although the risk indicators were not controlled for
when examining the impact of children’s learning-related skills on achievement, this
study underscores the need to focus on the relation between on task involvement and
early school success (Ladd et al., 1999).
On-task classroom involvement and self-regulation. Previous research has not only
drawn relations between on-task classroom involvement and success in the classroom,
but on-task classroom involvement has also been demonstrated to have significant
associations with self- regulation. In particular, the more affectively charged, or hot,
aspects of regulation have been demonstrated to have significant relations with on-task
classroom involvement. For example, children need to resist working on an engaging
activity because the class is collectively engaged in another activity. Research by Miller
and colleagues (2006) found that that children’s regulation of emotion in the classroom
significantly and positively predicted teachers’ views of their overall classroom
cooperation and involvement. This possibility is further confirmed by Mathieson and
Banerjee (2010), who showed that a child’s self-regulation, particularly the facet of hot
executive control, uniquely predicts teacher scores of a child interacting well with others
and demonstrating on-task involvement. More specifically, they found that children
with higher levels self-regulation were more likely to play in an interactive, on-task, and
socially competent manner.
16