Journal of Childhood

Introduction
Adolescence is a critical stage that requires the development of self-management skills, such as self-control and self-regulation. These skills play a crucial role in adolescents’ psychosocial adjustment and academic achievement (Duckworth et al., 2019; Shai & Yang, 2025). Conversely, weakness in these skills makes a person susceptible to academic failure and aggression (Laird et al., 2011). On the other hand, moral intelligence, with components, such as honesty, responsibility, and compassion (Aladamat et al., 2020), can provide a suitable motivational and cognitive platform for strengthening self-management. Despite the theoretical importance of this relationship, evidence in the Iranian context is scant and sometimes inconsistent. Several studies have addressed a positive relationship between moral intelligence and self-control (Manavipour, 2016; Shaabani et al., 2023) and self-regulation (Arashtnab et al., 2022; Hesampour and Rezaei, 2023). It is also necessary to consider the role of gender in this relationship, as adolescent girls may exhibit distinct patterns in moral development and self-regulation due to specific social pressures. This study aimed to identify the predictive role of moral intelligence on self-control and self-regulation in adolescent girls.
Research Methods
The present descriptive-correlational predictive study was fundamental in terms of its purpose and implementation. The statistical population was female ninth-grade students in Tehran in the 2023-2024 academic year. Using multi-stage cluster random sampling, 251 individuals were selected as the final sample. The instruments used were the Lenick and Keel’s Moral Intelligence Questionnaire (2005), the Tangey’s Self-Control Scale (2004), and the Bouffard’s Self-Regulation Questionnaire (1995). After obtaining informed consent and administering the questionnaires, the data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient, multiple and stepwise regression analysis with SPSS software, version 27. 
Findings
In this study, 251 ninth-grade female students with an average age of 15 participated. To test the main hypothesis, multiple regression analysis was performed, and the model results are presented in Table 1.
The results presented in Table 1 indicate that the multiple regression model of moral intelligence had significant predictive power for adolescents’ self-control and self-regulation. The multiple correlation coefficient (R = 0.461) reflected a relatively strong relationship between the variables examined. The coefficient of determination (R2=0.212) showed that about 21% of the variance of self-control and self-regulation was explained by moral intelligence. Also, the overall significance of the regression model was confirmed (F=0.535 and P=0.05) and the model had a good fit to predict the criterion variables. Also, the findings of the regression analysis showed that moral intelligence was a significant predictor of adolescents’ self-control and self-regulation (β=0.461, T=0.731). The regression coefficient (B=0.018) indicated that for each unit increase in the moral intelligence score, the self-control and self-regulation score increased by 0.025 units.
Conclusion
The findings of this study showed that moral intelligence was a positive and significant predictor of self-control and self-regulation in adolescent girls. These results are consistent with previous studies (Feng et al., 2024). The components of moral intelligence create an internal value framework that motivates adolescents to align their behaviors with these standards. This coordination requires the use of self-control to restrain conflicting impulses and the use of self-regulatory strategies to plan and monitor behavior in line with ethical goals. In other words, moral intelligence provides moral reason and direction for self-management.





Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
This article is derived from a master’s thesis with the approved proposal code number 3003 at Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran. In order to comply with professional ethics and prevent any possible bias, all questionnaires were completed and collected without first and last names. Participation and filling out the questionnaires was completely voluntary and free from any coercion. The subjects were assured that all answers would remain confidential and only the overall result would be announced, and they were asked to answer the questionnaires with utmost accuracy and honesty.
Funding
This article was a extracted from the master's thesis Hamideh Atabi, approved by the in Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran. This research did not receive any grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or non-profit sectors. 
Authors contributions
The initial writing of this article was based on the master’s thesis of the first author. The second author, as the supervisor and corresponding author, was responsible for content guidance and methodological supervision. The third author reviewed, integrated, and final edited the article.
Conflicts of interest
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful to all the students who participated and cooperated in this study.