Does young children’s free play predict social competence in preschool?

Thesis

It is well documented that both play and social competence serve an important role in promoting the development of young children. The relationship between play and social competence is well established. However, methodological approaches in research to date has been limited to observational data combined with parent reports or teacher reports, or questionnaire reports exclusively. Therefore, the current study aimed to investigate the relationship between play and social competence employing a multimethod and multisource approach. Measures of play ability were obtained from observations and teachers. Measures of social competence were obtained from parents and teachers. Results revealed that despite being somewhat related to teacher-reported play, observed play did not predict social competence. Results also showed that teacher-reported play did predict social competence. It was concluded that there was evidence supporting the predictive relationship between play and social competence. However, further research would be required to investigate the predictability of observed play.

Authors: Kirby, N

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-2rr5oqrqd
• Type of award: MSc
• Level of award: Masters
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: play; early years; social competence
• Subjects: Education (Early childhood); Developmental psychology