--- title: "Movement Behaviors Linked to Social-Emotional Outcomes in Early Childhood" id: "plos-one-8-24-hour-movement-behaviour-composition-associated-with-desired-social-emotional" canonical_url: "https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/plos-one-8-24-hour-movement-behaviour-composition-associated-with-desired-social-emotional" content_type: "clinical_feed_article" specialty: "Pediatrics" source_name: "PLOS ONE (Medicine)" source_url: "https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0361046" published_at: "2026-10-21T14:00:00.000Z" evidence_level: "Journal Feed" license: "CC-BY-NC-4.0 / Informational Use" --- # Movement Behaviors Linked to Social-Emotional Outcomes in Early Childhood ## Provenance & Clinical Metadata - **Canonical URL:** https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/plos-one-8-24-hour-movement-behaviour-composition-associated-with-desired-social-emotional - **Specialty:** [Pediatrics](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/pediatrics.md) - **Primary Source:** PLOS ONE (Medicine) - **Source URL:** [Original Journal Publication](https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0361046) - **Published At:** 2026-10-21T14:00:00.000Z - **Evidence Rating:** Journal Feed ## Executive GIST (TL;DR) - The study examined 24-hour movement behavior in children aged 1-4 years. - Included 560 children aged 1.2-2.9 years and 1,500 aged 3.0-4.9 years. - Measured sleep, sedentary behavior, light, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). - Used ActiGraph accelerometers for movement data and parent reports for sleep. - Analyzed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) across five social-emotional domains. - Results indicated significant associations between movement behaviors and SDQ scores (all p < 0.01). - Identified optimal movement behavior patterns dubbed the 'Goldilocks day' for positive outcomes. ## Clinical Analysis & Structured Key Points 24-hour movement behaviour composition associated with desired social-emotional functioning in the early years | PLOS One Browse Subject Areas ? Click through the PLOS taxonomy to find articles in your field. For more information about PLOS Subject Areas, click here . Article Authors Metrics Comments Media Coverage Reader Comments Figures Figures Abstract Introduction Movement behaviours (sleep, sedentary behaviour, and physical activity) influence numerous health outcomes in children, including their social-emotional development. The optimal 24-hour movement behaviour composition for positive social-emotional development is unknown. The purpose of this study was to determine the movement behaviour composition across the 24-hour day associated with desired social-emotional functioning in the early years. Methods This cross-sectional analysis included 560 children aged 1.2–2.9 years and 1,500 children aged 3.0–4.9 years from the Sleep and Activity Database (SADEY) for the Early Years study. Sedentary behaviour (SED), light physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were measured using ActiGraph accelerometers. Sleep duration was assessed using parent reports. Children social-emotional functioning was measured using the five domains of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a widely used screening instrument of children’s behaviours, emotions, and relationships across five domains (emotional problems, conduct problems, hyperactivity, peer problems, and prosocial behaviour). Compositional data analyses were used to estimate the 24-hour movement behaviour compositions associated with optimal scores for each of the SDQ domain z-scores and all five domains combined (the Goldilocks day). Results The movement behaviour composition was significantly associated with all five SDQ domains (all p 0.80 in Norwegian children aged 3–6 years (emotional symptoms ω = 0.85, conduct problems ω = 0.80, hyperactivity ω = 0.90, peer problems ω = 0.86, and prosocial behaviour ω = 0.90) [ 35 , 36 ]. Evidence also supports the psychometric properties of the preschool SDQ in younger children. In a large cohort of 2-year-olds, a modified five-factor structure was supported and internal consistency was satisfactory for four of the five subscales (α = 0.71–0.84), although internal consistency was lower for peer problems (α = 0.54) [ 37 ]. Research in children aged 1–2 years has also demonstrated acceptable overall psychometric properties, including internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and structural validity, although performance was generally stronger among older toddlers and for externalizing behaviours [ 32 ]. Covariates Parental marital status (single or dual parent household), highest parental education (≤ high school or > high school), and study (PATH-ABC, ACTNOW, Get-Up, or PLAYCE) were controlled for as confounding variables in regression analyses. We did not control for sex and age because the SDQ z-scores were standardized for these characteristics. The selection of confounding variables was limited to those collected across all contributing studies and variables that could be meaningfully harmonized. The harmonization of the parental status and education variables is described in S2 Table in S1 File . Statistical analysis Statistical analyses were conducted in R 4.2.2 [ 21 ]. 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