Phd in SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATIONAL
RESEARCH

Thesis title: Overcontrol in preschoolers: Relations with children’s adjustment, executive functions, and parenting

The present doctoral project, entitled “Overcontrol in preschoolers: Relations with children’s adjustment, executive functions, and parenting”, investigates the role of overcontrol during the preschool years in relation to children’s socio-emotional and behavioral adjustment, executive functions, and parenting dimensions. The interest in this topic arises from the need to examine maladaptive regulatory mechanisms, such as excessive self-control, that tend to consolidate early in life and have been identified as transdiagnostic markers of vulnerability associated with perfectionism, rigidity, and internalizing difficulties (Gilbert et al., 2020). The dissertation is organized into four chapters, each addressing a specific aspect of the topic. Chapter 1 outlines the theoretical framework of the research, providing an overview of the main conceptualizations of self-regulation and self-control as core mechanisms supporting adaptation and psychological well-being, and describing their developmental trajectories from early childhood (Nigg, 2017). Particular attention is devoted to overcontrol, conceptualized as a maladaptive form of self-control characterized by excessive rigidity, perfectionism, and limited behavioral and emotional flexibility (Eisenberg et al., 2013; Gilbert et al., 2020). The chapter also discusses the interplay between individual factors (such as temperament and executive functions) and contextual influences (such as parenting practices) in shaping children’s emerging regulatory abilities. Chapter 2 presents the first empirical study, aimed at validating the Italian version of the Overcontrol in Youth Checklist (OCYC; Gilbert et al., 2020) for preschool-age children. The study examined the factorial structure, reliability, and validity of the instrument in a sample of Italian children aged 4 to 6 years. Results confirmed the expected two-factor structure, Inflexibility and Perfectionism, and supported its internal consistency and construct validity. Higher levels of overcontrol were associated with increased difficulties, providing the first empirical evidence for the use of the OCYC in the Italian context. Chapter 3 presents the second study, which adopts a person-centered approach to explore how different socio-emotional and behavioral profiles in preschoolers vary according to levels of overcontrol and executive functions. A sample of 365 Italian parents completed questionnaires assessing children’s socio-emotional strengths and difficulties (SDQ-P), overcontrol, and executive functions. Latent profile analysis identified distinct socio-emotional profiles, highlighting the contribution of individual characteristics in shaping patterns of developmental vulnerability. Findings showed that children with higher levels of overcontrol were more likely to belong to profiles characterized by greater socio-emotional difficulties, and that inflexibility emerged as an early marker of vulnerability in preschool socio-emotional functioning. Chapter 4 reports the third study, which adopts a dimensional approach to investigate the interaction between parenting and child overcontrol in predicting socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes. A sample of 253 parents of children aged 3 to 5 years completed questionnaires assessing parenting dimensions (warmth, neglect, hostility, and control) and child overcontrol. Results indicated that parental control predicted higher internalizing problems only among children with high levels of overcontrol, underscoring the interactive nature of temperament and family context in shaping early adjustment. Furthermore, parental warmth emerged as a protective factor associated with greater prosocial behavior.