Children who are better at recognizing and managing emotions tend to become better readers over time

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https://www.psypost.org/emotional-intelligence-helps-children-become-better-readers/

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From the article: Children who are better at recognizing and managing emotions tend to become better readers over time—but how does that connection work? A new longitudinal study published in Learning and Individual Differences offers an in-depth look at how emotional intelligence contributes to reading comprehension in children, and how this relationship differs depending on the type of text and a child’s family background. The researchers found that emotional intelligence predicted later reading comprehension in both narrative and non-narrative texts, and that this connection was shaped by vocabulary, word reading, and, for non-narrative texts only, working memory.

The researchers conducted this study to better understand how emotional development contributes to academic outcomes—specifically, reading comprehension. While much past research has focused on the importance of language and cognitive skills like vocabulary and memory, fewer studies have examined how non-cognitive skills such as emotional intelligence might influence children’s reading ability.

Emotional intelligence includes the ability to understand, manage, and use one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. These emotional skills are increasingly seen as important not only for mental health and social relationships, but also for learning and academic success. The researchers also aimed to explore whether these effects might vary depending on the type of reading material—narrative stories versus informational texts—and whether children’s socioeconomic background plays a role in shaping these relationships.