Abstract
This study investigates the impact of democratic parenting attitudes on emotion regulation skills and social adjustment in preschool children aged four to six. Utilizing a quantitative correlational research design, data were collected from 248 mothers of preschool children using the Democratic Parenting Attitude Scale, the Emotion Regulation Checklist, and the Preschool Social Adjustment Scale. Structural equation modeling and regression analyses revealed that democratic parenting styles significantly and positively predict children's emotion regulation capacity. Furthermore, mediation analysis demonstrated that emotion regulation plays a crucial mediating role in the relationship between democratic parenting and children's social adjustment in school environments. These findings emphasize the vital role of authoritative, supportive, and democratic parenting in fostering early socio-emotional competence, offering critical evidence-based implications for modern parenting education, maternal support programs, and early childhood interventions.
