Background: Research has shown that interactions between young children’s temperament and the quality of care they receive predict the emergence of positive and negative socioemotional developmental ...outcomes. This multimethod study addresses such interactions, using observed and mother‐rated measures of difficult temperament, children’s committed, self‐regulated compliance and externalizing problems, and mothers’ responsiveness in a low‐income sample.
Methods: In 186 thirty‐month‐old children, difficult temperament was observed in the laboratory (as poor effortful control and high anger proneness), and rated by mothers. Mothers’ responsiveness was observed in lengthy naturalistic interactions at 30 and 33 months. At 40 months, children’s committed compliance and externalizing behavior problems were assessed using observations and several well‐established maternal report instruments.
Results: Parallel significant interactions between child difficult temperament and maternal responsiveness were found across both observed and mother‐rated measures of temperament. For difficult children, responsiveness had a significant effect such that those children were more compliant and had fewer externalizing problems when they received responsive care, but were less compliant and had more behavior problems when they received unresponsive care. For children with easy temperaments, maternal responsiveness and developmental outcomes were unrelated. All significant interactions reflected the diathesis‐stress model. There was no evidence of differential susceptibility, perhaps due to the pervasive stress present in the ecology of the studied families.
Conclusions: Those findings add to the growing body of evidence that for temperamentally difficult children, unresponsive parenting exacerbates risks for behavior problems, but responsive parenting can effectively buffer risks conferred by temperament.
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders in communities. This cross-sectional study assessed the relationship between temperament and other demographic characteristics of participants ...with anxiety. It also determined the predictors of anxiety disorders among this cohort. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Kerman, Iran from 11 Mars, 2018 to 22 May, 2019. The participants were 1532 people who were selected through convenience sampling from those who attended the second round of KERCARDS in 2017. Physical activity, anxiety, depression, and temperament were assessed through related questionnaires. The collected data were described and analyzed by mean (Standard Deviation (SD)) and logistic regression models in SPSS v.23. The mean (SD) age of the participants was 30.02 (6.83) years (age range: 11 to 40). More than two-thirds of them were married (n=1084, 70.7%) and held a diploma and university degrees (n=1112, 72.6%). The anxiety symptoms were prevalent among more than one-third of the participants (n=574, 37.5%, 95%CI: 35.2, 40.1). According to multivariate logistic regression model, female sex (OR:1.80, 95%CI:1.41, 2.30; P value:0.001), illiteracy, lower education (OR:1.40, 95%CI:1.09, 1.81; P value:0.009), a history of depression (OR:14.51, 95%CI:9.65, 21.80; P value:0.001), and having warm Mizaj (OR:1.31, 95%CI:1, 1.71; P value:0.04) were determined as predictors of anxiety. In the present study, female sex, lower educational status, the experience of depression, and warm temperament increased the risk of anxiety and were determined as predictors of anxiety disorder. Diagnosis of temperament seems to be necessary for recognizing anxiety symptoms and also finding an effective treatment.
This study applied a person-centered approach to differentiate the usage of cognitive emotion regulation strategies among subgroups of individuals by employing latent profile analyses. The subgroups ...were identified according to their temperament type (informing about how people formally process emotional stimuli) and anxiety/depression types (indicating what the content of processed emotional stimuli is). Specifically, we: (a) examined the existence of latent personality profiles based on two temperament types, high/low stimulation processing capacities, on the behavioral level that manifested themselves as a strength and adequacy of processing, and anxiety (arousal, apprehension) and depression types (valence, anhedonic), representing an affective content in the identified profiles. We further (b) explored how these profiles relate to cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Participants (N = 678; 52.6% females, age of 18–65 years) completed three questionnaires assessing: temperament; anxiety and depression types; and cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Five latent affective-temperament profiles were identified with a series of latent profile analyses: Strong-Anhedonic, Weak-Apprehension, Strong-Healthy, Weak-Valence, and Very Weak-Anhedonic. The results indicated significant between-profile differences in cognitive emotion regulation strategies. This study enables applicative recommendations to be formulated concerning the effective usage of cognitive emotion regulation strategies.
The now‐classic article “What Is Temperament? Four Approaches” by H. H. Goldsmith et al. (1987) brought together originators of four prominent temperament theories—Rothbart, Thomas and Chess, Buss ...and Plomin, and Goldsmith—to address foundational questions about the nature of temperament. This article reviews what has been learned about the nature of temperament in the intervening 25 years, It begins with an updating of the 1987 consensus definition of temperament that integrates more complex current findings. Next, 4 “progeny” trained in the original temperament traditions assess contributions of their respective approaches. The article then poses essential questions for the next generation of research on the fundamentals of temperament, including its structure, links with personality traits, interaction with context, and change and continuity over time.
Several models of individual differences in environmental sensitivity postulate increased sensitivity of some individuals to either stressful (diathesis-stress), supportive (vantage sensitivity), or ...both environments (differential susceptibility). In this meta-analysis we examine whether children vary in sensitivity to parenting depending on their temperament, and if so, which model can best be used to describe this sensitivity pattern. We tested whether associations between negative parenting and negative or positive child adjustment as well as between positive parenting and positive or negative child adjustment would be stronger among children higher on putative sensitivity markers (difficult temperament, negative emotionality, surgency, and effortful control). Longitudinal studies with children up to 18 years (k = 105 samples from 84 studies, Nmean = 6,153) that reported on a parenting-by-temperament interaction predicting child adjustment were included. We found 235 independent effect sizes for associations between parenting and child adjustment. Results showed that children with a more difficult temperament (compared with those with a more easy temperament) were more vulnerable to negative parenting, but also profited more from positive parenting, supporting the differential susceptibility model. Differences in susceptibility were expressed in externalizing and internalizing problems and in social and cognitive competence. Support for differential susceptibility for negative emotionality was, however, only present when this trait was assessed during infancy. Surgency and effortful control did not consistently moderate associations between parenting and child adjustment, providing little support for differential susceptibility, diathesis-stress, or vantage sensitivity models. Finally, parenting-by-temperament interactions were more pronounced when parenting was assessed using observations compared to questionnaires.
There is a disagreement between the factor-analytic (FA) approach in differential psychology and findings in neuroscience in identifying mobility-like temperament traits (i.e. speed of integration of ...actions that include plasticity, tempo, impulsivity). Due to their entanglement with “energetic” traits, mobility-like traits never emerge as independent dimensions in FA models of temperament and personality. This paper points out that there are, however, well-documented neurochemical biomarkers of these traits, which are distinct from biomarkers of “energetic” traits. To highlight this controversy, this paper reports the results from three studies conducted on English-Canadian, Russian, and Portuguese-Brazilian samples. The studies confirmed the correspondence between similar scales of two models developed independently in two distinct branches of the Pavlovian tradition. In all three samples and two inventories, there were strong positive correlations between mobility-like and endurance-like scales. By psychometric standards, these scales should be viewed as parts of one dimension, but this would be contrary to the evidence from neuroscience pointing to their different biomarkers. Moreover, our examination of PTS and STQ-77 temperament profiles associated with polymathy demonstrated the benefits of mobility-like traits. The disagreement between psychometric and neurochemical perspectives shows the limitations of relying on FA in deriving models of differential psychology.
•Mobility-like traits relate to seed of integration: plasticity, tempo, impulsivity.•2 studies confirm strong correlations between these and endurance-like traits.•Psychometrically, mobility-like and endurance-like traits would belong to one factor.•However, neurochemically they represent different regulatory systems.•The benefits of mobility-like traits are shown by their associations with polymathy.
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders in communities. This cross-sectional study assessed the relationship between temperament and other demographic characteristics of participants ...with anxiety. It also determined the predictors of anxiety disorder among this cohort. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Kerman, Iran from 11 Mars, 2018 to 22 May, 2019. The participants were 1532 people who were selected through convenience sampling from those who attended the second round of KERCARDS in 2017. Physical activity, anxiety, depression, and temperament were assessed through related questionnaires. The collected data were described and analyzed by mean (Standard Deviation (SD)) and logistic regression models in SPSS v.23. The mean (SD) age of the participants was 30.02 (6.83) years (age range: 11 to 40). More than two-thirds of them were married (n=1084, 70.7%) and held a diploma and other university degrees (n=1112, 72.6%). The anxiety symptoms were prevalent among more than one-third of the participants (n=574, 37.5%, 95%CI: 35.2, 40.1). According to multivariate logistic regression model, female sex (OR:1.80, 95%CI:1.41, 2.30; P-value:0.001), illiteracy, lower education (OR:1.40, 95%CI:1.09, 1.81; P-value:0.009), a history of depression (OR:14.51, 95%CI:9.65, 21.80; P-value:0.001), and having warm Mizaj (OR:1.31, 95%CI:1, 1.71; P-value:0.04) were determined as predictors of anxiety. In the present study, female sex, lower educational status, the experience of depression, and warm temperament increased the risk of anxiety and were determined as predictors of anxiety disorder. Diagnosis of temperament seems to be necessary for recognizing anxiety symptoms and also finding an effective treatment.
Sex-specific differences in DNA methylation of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) have been shown in adults and are related to several mental disorders. Negative affectivity early in life is a ...trans-diagnostic risk marker of later psychopathology and is partly under genetic control. However, sex-specific variations in OXTR methylation (OXTRm) in infants and their associations with negative affectivity are still unknown.
Here, we explored sex differences in the association between infant OXTRm at birth and negative affectivity at 3 months of age.
Infants and their mothers (N = 224) were recruited at delivery. Infants’ methylation status was assessed in 13 CpG sites within the OXTR gene intron 1 region (chr3: 8810654–8810919) in buccal cells at birth while 3-month-old infants’ negative affectivity was assessed by mothers using a well-validated temperament questionnaire.
OXTRm at 12 CpG sites was higher in females than in males. Moreover, higher infants’ OXTRm at 6 specific CpG sites was associated with greater negative affectivity in males, but not in females.
These results provide new insights into the role of sex-dependent epigenetic mechanisms linking OXTRm with early infants’ emotional development. Understanding the degree to which epigenetic processes relate to early temperamental variations may help inform the etiology of later childhood psychopathological outcomes.
•CpG-specific OXTR methylation (OXTRm) at birth was higher in females than in males.•Higher OXTRm was associated with greater negative emotionality in males.•No association between OXTRm and negative emotionality emerged in females.
This study aimed to determine the quality of human-animal interactions during cattle auctions in Panama and to assess the relationship between cattle reactivity, value paid, and time spent on ...commercialization. Data were recorded by watching video records of 4531 individual cattle sold in the main Panamanian auctions. Cattle reactivity was assessed by one previously trained observer when the animals entered the box where they were exposed for sale, assigning one of three scores: 1 = calm, 2 = reactive, and 3 = very reactive. Human-animal interactions were assessed using a binary score to assess the occurrence of hitting (1) or not (0) during commercialization. When cattle were hit to stimulate movement, their reactivity was assessed again to determine whether hitting altered their behavior. The value paid (USD/kg of live weight), and the time spent on commercialization (s) of each animal were also recorded in a subsample of 704 animals. Cattle reactivity, genetic group, animal category, auction location and phase of commercialization influenced the occurrence of hits (p<0.05). Hitting altered cattle reactivity (p<0.001); 95 % of the animals scored calm when they entered the auction box, dropped to 85 % after being hit. There was a significant effect of the reactivity score (p<0.05), genetic group (p=0.01), location (p<0.001) and auction phase (p=0.002) on the number of hits received by the cattle when inside the auction box. The median value paid for very reactive cattle tended to be higher than for calm cattle (1.85 vs 1.82 USD/kg; respectively; p=0.06). There were no differences in the time spent on commercialization according to cattle reactivity (p>0.05). In conclusion, cattle reactivity, and auction phase, in addition to other factors such as genetic group, animal category, and auction location, affected the frequency of negative human-animal interactions during commercialization. Cattle reactivity tended to affect the price paid per head of cattle but not the time spent in marketing.
•Cattle reactivity affected the human-animal interactions during cattle auctions.•Calm cattle were sold at a lower value in the Panamanian Auctions.•Commercialization times for calm, reactive, and highly reactive cattle were similar.
Early temperamental characteristics may influence children's developmental pathways and predict future psychopathology. However, the environmental context may also shape or interact with infant ...temperament and indirectly contribute to increased vulnerability to adverse developmental outcomes. The aim of the present study is to explore the long-term contribution of temperamental traits at twelve months of age to the presence of emotional and behavioral problems later in childhood, and whether this association varies with the child's sex, parental separation, family socioeconomic status and maternal depression.
1184 mother-child pairs from the EDEN mother-child birth cohort study based in France (2003-2011), were followed from 24-28 weeks of pregnancy to the child's fifth birthday. Infant temperament at 12 months was assessed with the Emotionality Activity and Sociability (EAS) questionnaire and behavior at 5.5 years was assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).
Emotional temperament in infancy predicts children's overall behavioral scores (β = 1.16, p<0.001), emotional difficulties (β = 0.30, p<0.001), conduct problems (β = 0.51, p<0.001) and symptoms of hyperactivity/inattention (β = 0.31, p = 0.01) at 5.5 years. Infants' active temperament predicts later conduct problems (β = 0.30, p = 0.02), while shyness predicts later emotional problems (β = 0.22, p = 0.04). The association between the child's temperament in infancy and later behavior did not vary with children's own or family characteristics.
An emotional temperament in infancy is associated with higher levels of emotional and behavioral difficulties at the age of 5.5 years. Children who show high emotionality early on may require early prevention and intervention efforts to divert possible adverse developmental pathways.
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