Self-regulation skills help students concentrate on learning, including reading and writing. Self-regulation is the ability to alter and regulate our emotional and behavioral responses.

Self-regulation includes altering behavioral responses and aligning them with standards, such as social expectations. Students who can successfully self-regulate their behaviors accomplish this by monitoring and inhibiting actions or impulses. It is important to note that the perception of appropriate behavior in schools may be dictated by dominant social norms in a culture and may not match students' own cultural norms, attitudes, and beliefs.

Self-regulation can be broken down into three main components:

Cognitive regulation involves using Attention and executive functions (i.e., Working Memory, Inhibition, Cognitive Flexibility) to inhibit impulses and attend to tasks.

Behavioral regulation refers to the ability to adjust one's behavior in order to meet the norms of a given context.

Emotion regulation (part of the Emotion factor) refers to the ability to manage emotional arousal.

Students with weaker Self-regulation skills are at greater risk for low academic achievement and emotional and conduct problems. Students of color and those with disabilities are also at greater risk of disciplinary actions such as suspension for what is perceived as disruptive behavior. As a result, educators and students may benefit from culturally-responsive and inclusive training addressing Self-regulation.

Read the full annotated bibliography of our Self-regulation research.

Building Social Emotional Awareness: Video discussing the research-based RULER approach to social-emotional learning

Emotional Regulation: A free microcredential to support students' emotional regulation

Self-Awareness: A free microcredential to support students' self-awareness

Self-Regulation: A free microcredential to support students' self regulation