Temperament, Relationships, and Development in Low-Income Children

What is the relationship between warm adult-child relationships and developmental outcomes?

Warm, responsive relationships are linked to positive developmental outcomes, while conflictual relationships can be harmful.

How do regulatory traits influence relationships with adults?

Regulatory traits, such as effortful control and inhibitory control, are linked to better relationships with adults.

What impact do reactive traits have on children's relationships with teachers?

Reactive traits, like negative emotionality, are linked to poorer relationships, especially with teachers.

What is the focus of the study regarding temperament types?

The study explores how reactive and regulatory temperament traits relate to the quality of parent-child and teacher-child relationships.

What are the effects of supportive parent-child relationships?

Supportive relationships are linked to children's emotional regulation, social competence, and positive peer interactions.

What are the consequences of conflictual parenting?

Conflictual or harsh parenting is associated with problem behaviors and poorer social and academic outcomes, especially in children with difficult temperaments.

How do difficult temperaments affect parenting practices?

Children with difficult temperaments may elicit harsher parenting, particularly from mothers.

What benefits do children experience from close relationships with teachers?

Children with warm relationships with teachers tend to have fewer behavioral problems, better academic performance, and enjoy school more.

What relationship dynamics are observed in socially withdrawn or aggressive children?

These children are more likely to have lower levels of closeness and higher levels of conflict in their teacher-child relationships.

What role does effortful control play in teacher-child relationships?

Close relationships with teachers can serve as a protective factor for the social-emotional adjustment of shy children.

What differences were found in temperamental regulation between genders?

Parents reported that girls had significantly higher temperamental regulation than boys.

How does maternal education affect conflict in teacher-child relationships?

Children whose mothers had less than a high school education showed lower conflict than those with a high school degree.

What is the significance of the U-shaped relationship regarding maternal education?

Moms without a high school degree are more likely to be stay-at-home parents, while those with college degrees may work multiple jobs, affecting time spent with children.

How does reactive temperament relate to social skills?

Children's reactive temperament is positively associated with conflictual relationships and negatively associated with parent-child closeness.

What moderating role do regulatory components of temperament play?

Regulatory components moderate the effects of reactive components on children's social competence and prosocial behavior.

What are the three original distinctions of temperament?

Difficult, easy, and slow-to-warm types, based on responses to the environment.

What characterizes a 'difficult' temperament?

Frequent crying, negative reactions to change, and difficulty establishing routines.

What characterizes an 'easy' temperament?

Generally positive mood, easy routine establishment, and quick adaptation.

What characterizes a 'slow-to-warm' temperament?

Lower activity level, initial negative reactions to new things, but gradual adaptation.

What is a limitation of the three temperament categories?

The categories aren't always distinct and it can be difficult to measure and classify children precisely.

What is the revised definition of temperament commonly accepted today?

Temperament is viewed as typical responses to the environment, encompassing individual differences in emotion, motor activity, and attention.

What are the three dimensions proposed by Rothbart that interact to produce temperament?

Effortful control, negative affectivity, and surgency.

What is effortful control?

The ability to engage in or inhibit specific behaviors; it involves control or regulation of attention and behavior.

What does high effortful control look like?

Ability to focus and shift attention, suppress inappropriate behaviors, and detect subtle environmental cues.

Define negative affectivity.

Proneness to fear, frustration, and other negative physiological reactions.

What are characteristics of high negativity?

Strong frustration responses, fear responses to distress, negative reactions to stimulation, and slow recovery from distress.

What is surgency in the context of temperament?

Level of activity and exploration, along with a positive response to new experiences and stimulation.

What does high surgency look like?

Frequent motor activity, strong positive reactions to stimulation, impulsive behavior, and excitement for new activities.

What is the diathesis-stress model in relation to temperament?

It suggests that high susceptibility genes combined with a negative environment can lead to poor outcomes.

Which temperament profiles are concerning for child development?

Low effortful control, high negativity, and low surgency.

What evidence of individual differences in temperament emerges during the prenatal period?

Pregnant individuals report differences in fetal activity.

How do temperament dimensions manifest in infants by 2-3 months?

Babies differ in levels of distress and avoidance.

What is the relationship between early temperament and later personality?

Early temperament predicts later personality traits, including the Big 5 dimensions.

What internalizing problems are associated with high negativity in early temperament?

Fearfulness and withdrawn behavior predictive of anxiety, guilt, and low empathy.

What externalizing problems are linked to low effortful control?

Predictive of disruptive or aggressive behavior.

How does temperament affect social development?

Low effortful control, high negativity, and high surgency may hinder social competence and peer acceptance.

What temperament characteristics are predictive of challenges in early adolescence?

High negativity and low surgency at age 3 predict higher intolerance of uncertainty.

What is the outcome of an inhibited temperament in adulthood?

Associated with introversion, lower social functioning, and higher risks of anxiety and depression.

How does temperament influence relationships with parents and teachers?

Temperament affects the quality of relationships, with high reactivity leading to less closeness and more conflict.

What parenting practices are influenced by a child's temperament?

Parenting warmth and control are shaped by the child's regulatory and reactive behaviors.

What were the findings of the study on low-income families regarding temperament?

High reactivity was linked to less closeness and more conflict in child-parent and child-teacher relationships.

What challenges do children with high reactivity and low regulatory abilities face in classroom settings?

They may struggle with relationships and adapt to situational demands.