The internalization model of the development of reflective emotion regulation

The proposed model offers a unified process-oriented and developmental framework for the emergence of reflective emotion regulation across childhood. It delineates three core steps—awareness, evaluation, and regulation of emotions—together with the requisite competencies: emotion knowledge, norms and values, and a repertoire of regulation strategies. Early in development, caregivers assume primary responsibility for these processes through co-awareness, co-evaluation, and co-regulation. From a transactional perspective, the model delineates how specific caregiver practices shape children’s situated emotional experience and behavior and support the gradual transition from co-regulation to self-regulation of emotions. While the model receives initial empirical support, it also identifies key avenues for future research, including the need for culture-sensitive extensions of positive development.