Self-regulation skills are foundational to successful participation in society, and predict a suite of positive outcomes throughout life. It has long been asserted that free (i.e., unstructured) play is important for the development of self-regulation, but studies investigating play and self-regulation have faced empirical limitations. The current study used a large sample (n = 2213) from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children to investigate time spent in unstructured quiet and active play activities at ages 2–3 and 4–5 years as a predictor of self-regulation abilities 2 years later. Children's play was reported by parents who completed a 24-hour time-use diary for 1 random weekend day and 1 weekday. Self-regulation was indexed at ages 4–5 and 6–7 by parent-, teacher- and observer-reported items comparable to similar large, longitudinal studies. Results showed that the more time children spent in unstructured quiet play in the toddler and preschool years, the better their self-regulation abilities at ages 4–5 and 6–7 years, even after controlling for earlier self-regulation abilities and other known predictors. Further, between 1 and 5 hours of preschoolers’ unstructured active play time significantly predicted self-regulation 2 years later. This study provides early support for parenting programs designed to increase opportunities for children to spend time in unstructured, free play in the early years.

自我调节技能是成功参与社会的基础，并预测一生中一系列积极的结果。长期以来，人们一直断言自由（即非结构化）游戏对于自我调节的发展很重要，但研究游戏和自我调节的研究面临着经验上的局限性。当前的研究使用来自澳大利亚儿童纵向研究的大样本 (n = 2213) 来调查 2-3 岁和 4-5 岁在非结构化安静和积极的游戏活动中花费的时间作为 2 岁自我调节能力的预测指标之后。孩子们的游戏由父母报告，他们完成了 1 个随机周末和 1 个工作日的 24 小时时间使用日记。4-5 岁和 6-7 岁的自我调节指数由家长、教师和观察者报告的项目与类似的大型、纵向研究。结果表明，即使在控制了早期的自我调节能力和其他已知预测因素之后，儿童在幼儿和学龄前儿童花在非结构化安静游戏中的时间越多，他们在 4-5 岁和 6-7 岁时的自我调节能力就越好. 此外，学龄前儿童 1 到 5 小时的非结构化主动游戏时间显着预测了 2 年后的自我调节。这项研究为旨在增加儿童在早年进行非结构化、自由玩耍的机会的育儿计划提供早期支持。即使在控制了早期的自我调节能力和其他已知的预测因素之后。此外，学龄前儿童 1 到 5 小时的非结构化主动游戏时间显着预测了 2 年后的自我调节。这项研究为旨在增加儿童在早年进行非结构化、自由玩耍的机会的育儿计划提供早期支持。即使在控制了早期的自我调节能力和其他已知的预测因素之后。此外，学龄前儿童 1 到 5 小时的非结构化主动游戏时间显着预测了 2 年后的自我调节。这项研究为旨在增加儿童在早年进行非结构化、自由玩耍的机会的育儿计划提供早期支持。