Children's friendship quality in early childhood education: The interplay with classroom quality, participation practices, and length of exposure to the ECE teacher

Abstract

Friendships are crucial for children, and high-quality friendships encompass positive, supportive, and low-conflict interactions. Early childhood education (ECE) teachers spend considerable time with children and influence their relationships through high-quality teacher-child interactions and opportunities for child participation. This study examined the associations between observed classroom quality, observed participation practices, and children’s friendship quality, considering the moderating role of the length of exposure to the lead ECE teacher (i.e., months with the lead teacher). Participants in this study were 336 children (163 boys), aged 42 to 76 months (M = 60.14, SD = 7.86), from 58 ECE classrooms in the Lisbon area, Portugal, and their lead teachers. Findings suggest (i) a positive relationship between instructional support and closeness in children's friendships, when children spent more months with the lead teacher; (ii) a negative relationship between emotional support and conflict in children's friendships, when children spent more months with the lead teacher; (iii) a positive relationship between classroom organization and conflict in children’s friendships, when children spent fewer months with the lead teacher; and (iv) a negative relationship between conditions for participation and conflict in children's friendships, when children spent more time with the lead teacher. These findings have implications for practice and policymaking, emphasizing the relevance of sustained high-quality teacher-child interactions and participation practices to enhance children’s friendship quality in ECE.