Background. Despite the amount of research on emotion understanding, the relationship between value orientations of domains and the development of emotion understanding abilities in preschoolers remains unexplored. Understanding these connections is important for developing effective programs to support emotional development and create conditions for the harmonious formation of values in younger preschoolers.
Objectives. A study of the correlation of value orientations and the level of emotion comprehension in children of primary preschool age.
Sample. The sample consisted of 321 children aged 40 to 67 months (M = 54.61; SD = 4.42) who attended secondary kindergarten groups in the following Russian cities: Moscow (24.3% of the sample), Sochi (4.4% of the sample), Tatarstan (47% of the sample), Barnaul (24.3% of the sample). The sample included 46.7% of boys.
Methods. To study the child’s value orientations, the “Three Wishes” technique (Prizhozhan, Tolstykh, 2005; Veraksa, 2012) was used. The “Test of Emotion Comprehension” method (Pons, Harris, 2000; Veraksa et al., 2021) was used to assess the ability to understand emotions in preschoolers.
Results. It was found that egocentricity of desires in young preschool children is one of the key features of their mental development. Value orientations of preschool children are largely associated with material goods. Children’s inability to invent desires and social desirability are associated with a low level of understanding of emotions. Communicative values positively correlate with children’s understanding of mental causes of emotions, while status values are associated with understanding of external causes of emotions and the general level of understanding of emotions.
Conclusions. The results of the study show a relationship between the ability to understand emotions and value orientations in young preschoolers: in children with a more developed understanding of emotions, material, communicative and status values predominate, while children with a less developed understanding of emotions demonstrate social desirability in their desires or are unable to formulate them at all.