Temperament and personality shape how infants and toddlers interact with the world. These traits, influenced by both genes and environment, affect a child's reactions, behaviors, and relationships. Understanding these individual differences helps caregivers support healthy socioemotional development.

Different temperament types and emerging personality traits impact how children approach new situations and regulate emotions. The concept of "goodness of fit" highlights the importance of aligning parenting practices with a child's unique temperament to foster positive outcomes.

Temperament Types

Defining Temperament and Its Characteristics

• Temperament refers to individual differences in reactivity and self-regulation that are biologically based and relatively stable across situations and over time
• Encompasses a child's behavioral style and the way they approach and react to the world
• Influences how children interact with their environment and how others respond to them

Three Main Temperament Types

• Easy temperament children (about 40%) are generally positive, adaptable, and mild in their reactions to new situations or frustrations
  • Quickly establish regular routines in infancy (sleeping, eating)
  • Generally positive mood and adapt easily to new experiences
• Difficult temperament children (about 10%) are often negative, withdraw from new situations, are slow to adapt, and react intensely to stimuli
  • Irregular routines, tend to be very active and fussy
  • React negatively and cry frequently, more difficult to soothe
• Slow-to-warm-up temperament children (about 15%) are inactive, show mild, low-key reactions to environmental stimuli, are negative in mood, and adjust slowly to new experiences
  • Inactive, have a low activity level
  • React negatively to new situations but react less intensely compared to difficult temperament children

Implications and Considerations

• Most children do not fit neatly into one temperament type and may show characteristics of more than one
• Temperament types are not fixed labels but describe a child's behavioral tendencies
• Understanding a child's temperament can help caregivers better understand and respond to their needs and support their development

Personality Traits

Key Personality Traits in Early Childhood

• Extraversion refers to the tendency to be sociable, assertive, and experience positive emotions
  • Extraverted children are outgoing, talkative, and enjoy social interactions
• Neuroticism involves the tendency to experience negative emotions like anxiety, fear, and sadness
  • Children high in neuroticism may be more prone to worry, fear, and emotional instability
• Behavioral inhibition is the tendency to be shy, timid, and withdrawn in unfamiliar situations
  • Inhibited children may be more cautious, less exploratory, and take longer to adjust to new situations
• Effortful control involves the ability to voluntarily regulate attention, emotions, and behavior
  • Children with high effortful control can better manage their impulses, focus attention, and regulate their emotions

Personality Traits and Child Development

• These personality traits emerge early in life and show moderate stability over time
• Personality traits influence how children approach and interact with their environment
• Traits like extraversion and effortful control are associated with positive developmental outcomes (social competence, academic success)
• High neuroticism and behavioral inhibition may increase risk for anxiety and internalizing problems

Assessing Personality in Early Childhood

• Personality traits can be assessed through parent/caregiver reports, observations, and laboratory measures
• The Children's Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ) is a commonly used parent-report measure of temperament and personality in early childhood
• Observational and laboratory measures assess specific behaviors related to personality traits (sociability, shyness, emotion regulation)

Influences on Temperament and Personality

Genetic Influences

• Twin and adoption studies suggest that temperament and personality have a moderate genetic component
• Heritability estimates range from 20-60%, suggesting genes play a role but do not fully determine temperament and personality
• Specific genes (serotonin transporter gene, dopamine receptor genes) have been associated with traits like neuroticism and extraversion

Environmental Influences

• Parenting practices, family environment, and early experiences shape the expression of temperament and personality
• Sensitive, responsive caregiving can help children regulate their emotions and behavior
• Stressful life events (poverty, family conflict) may negatively impact temperament and increase risk for emotional and behavioral problems
• Cultural factors (values, expectations) also influence the expression and interpretation of temperament and personality traits

Goodness of Fit

• Goodness of fit refers to the match between a child's temperament and the demands and expectations of their environment
• A good fit occurs when a child's temperament is compatible with the expectations and style of their caregivers and environment
  • An easygoing child may thrive in a more relaxed, flexible family environment
• A poor fit happens when there is a mismatch between temperament and environmental expectations
  • A shy, inhibited child may struggle in a high-pressure, socially demanding environment
• Goodness of fit is important for positive child outcomes and can be improved by adapting parenting practices and expectations to better suit a child's temperament