Protective Factors and Risk Factors in Preschool Aged Children

Abstract

Do resiliency or protective factors moderate risk factors in preschool aged children? This study looks at pre- and post-treatment data from 49 preschool children whose average age was 4 years old. The treatment included prevention and early intervention programs that promote emotional well-being and the development of healthy interpersonal relationships in children, ages birth to eight, and their caregivers. The Devereux Early Childhood Assessment Scale (DECA) was used to measure protective factors as well as behavior concerns by parents and teachers. There was no significant interaction effect between the number of risk factors and the post-treatment protective factors scores. This result does not support prior research on protective and risk factors. Cluster analysis was used to identify subgroups.