An investigation into the relationship between self-perception and sexual development in children attending preschool education

In this study, our objective was to examine the relationship between the self-perception and sexual development of children aged between five and six. The study group of the study included 110 children in the five-six age group attending pre-primary education institutions in Erzincan city center and their mothers. As part of this research, the DeMoulin Self-Concept Scale for Children was used to evaluate the children's self-perceptions, and the Family Form of the Selcuk Sexual Development Scale-Sexual Identity and Gender-Related Behavior Subscale for mothers was used to evaluate the children's sexual development. As a result of the research, we found that, in fact, there is a relationship between sexual identity and self-efficacy and self-esteem, which are the sub-dimensions of self-perception. We found that self-efficacy is a significant predictor of sexual identity; however, we could not establish unequivocally that there was a significant relationship between gender-related behavior and self-efficacy and self-esteem.