Background: The adversity faced by children in impoverished communities is widely studied with attention to numerous risk factors and the development of behavioral and emotional difficulties. Children in rural, low-income communities are particularly at risk for toxic stress and reduced access to health services. Resilience literature, however, is instrumental in moving beyond the study of maladaptive behavioral patterns, turning instead to an investigation of adaptive outcomes in the face of adversity.

Methods: This analysis examined key protective factors among preschool children in low-income, rural areas. Teacher-reported Devereux Early Childhood Assessments for Preschoolers were completed for 182 Head Start children from seven rural, midwestern communities.

Results: The majority of children were in the typical range for each protective factor and for behavioral concerns. In comparison to a standardized sample, however, the rural sample had lower mean scores for all protective factors. The greatest effect size was found in attachment/relationships, with rural Head Start children scoring lower on attachment/relationships than the standardized sample. Females had statistically significantly higher scores for initiative, self-regulation, attachment/relationships, and total protective factors, while having lower behavioral concerns than males. Statistically significant negative correlations were also found between behavioral concerns and each protective factor, with the strongest negative correlation occurring with self-regulation.

Conclusion: This analysis adds to existing literature by delineating the prevalence of with-in child protective factors among preschool children in rural, low-income communities and identifying areas in which these children are most in need of additional support. Adopting a resiliency model allows us to importantly move beyond pathologizing young children, focusing instead on how to promote positive outcomes.