Expecting kindness and independence: socialization goals moderate relations between emotion socialization and toddler socioemotional adjustment

Parents hold goals for the behaviours they want their toddler to develop. Parents may expect their 2-year-old to be able to help others, or to help themselves in small ways that show an emerging independence. We examined how socialization goals together with emotion socialization practices relate to toddlers′ socioemotional adjustment in a sample of 84 parents (Mage = 32.23 years; 77 mothers) of 20- to 36-month-old toddlers (Mage = 24.60 months; 40 boys; 39% Hispanic or Latino). Toddlers were more socioemotionally competent when parents who more frequently expressed positive emotion held goals