Characteristics of Self-Regulation in Pretend Play: A Preliminary Comparison of Different Types of Play

Abstract

Pretend play benefits child development in various way one of which is self-regulation. Previous studies have examined the relationship between pretend play, specifically role play, and self-regulation of both inside and outside pretend play. However, no study has identified the differentiating characteristics of self-regulation in pretend play. In this study, role play as well as other types play of were observed among 32 four- to six-year-olds so as to compare self-regulatory behavior in role play and constructive and functional play from three perspectives: cognitive/emotional; planning, monitoring, control, and evaluation; and self-regulation, other-regulation, and shared-regulation. The results revealed that planning behavior in role play was significantly more frequent when compared to constructive and functional play. With regard to the other categories, no significant differences were found between role play and the other types of paly. These finding suggest that although children exhibit planning behavior more in role play than in constructive and functional play, they also demonstrate other categories of self-regulation in types of play besides role play.