Self‐esteem has implications for a wide variety of psychological problems. This study sought to determine whether parenting practices at ages 3 and 4 years contributed to 5‐year‐old children's self‐perception, a precursor to later self‐esteem. Data came from a longitudinal study in which preschool twin or triplet children were tested within a month of their birthdays; complete data were available for 263 children tested at ages 4 and 5 years and for 211 children tested at ages 3 and 5 years. As part of testing at ages 3 and 4, children and parents engaged in a puzzle task for 10 min; their behaviors were coded by trained raters. Parenting variables of verbal warmth, positive affect, permissive discipline, and sensitivity were coded. At age 5, children's self‐perception was assessed using the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children. Results showed that parental positive affect and sensitivity at age 4 predicted increased maternal acceptance at age 5, and permissive discipline predicted decreased peer acceptance scores for girls, but not boys. Additionally, parental verbal warmth at age 3 predicted higher peer acceptance scores at age 5. Finally, boys who experienced increases in parent positive affect from ages 3 to 4 showed higher peer acceptance scores at age 5. This study provides evidence that parenting is an important factor in the development of preschool children's self‐perception.

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