Aims: To determine whether distinct trends can exist in children's diurnal cortisol slopes as they transition to school, and the extent to which these trends relate to preschool attendance and/or exerted effortful control. Method: A secondary analysis of the anonymised data gathered for the UK Transition to School Study was carried out. 105 children were studied over a 12-month period during transition to school at mean age 55 months. Children's diurnal cortisol slopes were measured as the difference between average salivary cortisol concentrations (SCC) sampled at waking and early evening over two days at each of three measurement time points: 4 months before, 2 weeks after, and 6 months after school entry. Children's effortful control was measured at 2 weeks after school entry using the parent-administered Child Behavior Questionnaire. Parental questionnaires recorded the duration children spent in preschool (months; days per week; hours per week), and four background characteristics: child gender, parental cohabitation, responding parent's age, and responding parent's level of education. Findings: Latent class growth analysis suggested two distinct trends in diurnal cortisol slopes during children's transition to school: 39% of children demonstrated flatter diurnal cortisol slopes. These children were likely to have spent fewer hours per week in preschool, and were likely to exert less effortful control 2 weeks after transitioning to school. These associations underscore the importance of continuity in children's daily routines as they transition to school. Implications are discussed concerning school readiness and the effectiveness of early interventions.

中文翻译：

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儿童过渡到学校：学龄前出勤率、皮质醇模式和努力控制之间的关系

目的：确定儿童在过渡到学校时的昼夜皮质醇斜率是否存在明显的趋势，以及这些趋势与学龄前出勤率和/或努力控制相关的程度。方法：对为英国过渡到学校研究收集的匿名数据进行了二次分析。在平均年龄为 55 个月的过渡到学校期间，105 名儿童接受了为期 12 个月的研究。儿童的昼夜皮质醇斜率被测量为在三个测量时间点（入学前 4 个月、入学后 2 周和入学后 6 个月）的两天内醒来和傍晚采样的平均唾液皮质醇浓度 (SCC) 之间的差异。孩子们' 在入学 2 周后，使用家长管理的儿童行为问卷测量了他们的努力控制。家长问卷记录了孩子在学前班度过的时间（月；每周天；每周小时），以及四个背景特征：孩子性别、父母同居、回应父母的年龄和回应父母的教育水平。结果：潜在类别增长分析表明，在儿童过渡到学校期间，昼夜皮质醇斜率有两种不同的趋势：39% 的儿童表现出更平坦的昼夜皮质醇斜率。这些孩子每周在学前班的时间可能会更少，并且在过渡到学校后 2 周内可能会减少努力控制。这些协会强调了儿童学习连续性的重要性。他们过渡到学校时的日常生活。讨论了关于入学准备和早期干预有效性的影响。