Psychosocial Development – Temperament

Introduction to Temperament

  • Temperament = the newborn’s “personality” (pre-personality)

    • Characteristic mood

    • Typical activity level

    • Modes of responding to environmental stimuli

    • Considered one of the earliest observable pieces of psychosocial development, often examined as a precursor to attachment security.

  • Central questions raised in the lecture:

    • How stable is temperament over the life span?

    • Does early temperament predict later behavioural or personality outcomes?

    • How do genetic factors interact with cultural/parenting environments to shape temperament?

Thomas & Chess Longitudinal Study (Classic Work)

  • Design

    • Followed a birth cohort from infancy (≈ 3–43\text{–}4 months) through adolescence (≈ 1010 years).

    • Longitudinal approach allowed within-child comparisons across time.

  • Core finding

    • Temperament at 3–43\text{–}4 months was largely predictive of temperament at 1010 years.

    • Provided empirical support for temperamental stability.

  • Resulting typology (3 broad styles, still influential):

    1. Easy Babies

    • Cheerful, positive affect

    • Regular sleep/eat patterns

    • Low fussiness; high adaptability to change

    • Prevalence: ≈ 40%40\% of infants

    1. Slow-to-Warm-Up Babies

    • Less overtly cheerful

    • Moderately irregular biological rhythms

    • More easily upset; show cautious or inhibited approach to novelty

    • Lower adaptability

    • Prevalence: ≈ 15%15\%

    1. Difficult Babies

    • Generally glum/irritable mood

    • Highly irregular sleep/eating, erratic behaviour

    • High resistance to change; intense negative reaction to novelty

    • Prevalence: ≈ 10%10\%

  • Remaining 35%35\%: Not cleanly classifiable; may show a mosaic of traits or shift categories across contexts/time.

  • Percentages are population averages, not absolute; individual variance expected.

Stability & Predictive Power of Early Temperament

  • Evidence (including Thomas & Chess, later replication studies)

    • Early temperament → later personality profiles.

    • Predicts cognitive performance (e.g., attention span, persistence on tasks).

    • Forecasts peer relationship quality and social competence.

    • Associated with risk for conduct disorder, substance use, and adolescent drug taking.

  • Outcome gradient

    • \text{Easy} > \text{Slow-to-Warm-Up} > \text{Difficult} across most life-course domains (academic, social, behavioural health).

Cultural Influences on Temperament

  • Temperament emerges from gene × environment interactions—culture shapes the environmental side.

Kyrios et al. (1989) – Greek-Australian vs Anglo-Australian Infants

  • Location: Multicultural Melbourne (largest Greek immigrant community in Australia at the time).

  • Method

    • Matched groups on age, family income, parental education, health status, etc.

  • Findings

    • Greek-Australian infants more likely to show a difficult temperament relative to matched Anglo peers:

    • More negative mood/approach

    • Lower adaptability

    • Less distractibility (harder to soothe)

    • Lower positive affect

  • Implication: Child-rearing beliefs/practices tied to cultural background can nudge temperamental expression.

  • Note: Demographic landscape has changed; replication today might yield different outcomes.

Friedman (Earlier Study) – Aboriginal vs Anglo-Australian Newborns

  • Aboriginal newborns compared with Anglo-Australian newborns.

  • Aboriginal infants were:

    • More quietly alert (calm attentiveness)

    • Less tense/irritable

    • Happier & more responsive to cuddling

    • Better at self-soothing after crying episodes

  • Suggests cultural or prenatal environmental factors foster early regulatory capacities.

Recent Longitudinal Comparison – Indigenous vs Non-Indigenous Infants

  • Newer research tracks infants over time rather than single snapshots.

  • Result: Similar temperament structures between groups, specifically regarding

    • Social interaction style,

    • Persistence,

    • Reactivity to people & objects.

  • Interpretation: Cultural effects may evolve with societal change; earlier differences may diminish or manifest differently across generations.

Overarching Conclusions & Exam-Relevant Points

  • Temperament is the earliest discernible facet of personality; most infants can be grouped into Easy, Slow-to-Warm-Up, or Difficult.

  • Stability: Substantial continuity from months-old infancy through at least middle childhood (≈ 1010 years), and predictive signals extend into adolescence.

  • Outcomes: Early temperament forecasts later personality traits, cognitive abilities, social competence, and behavioural health risks.

  • Cultural/Environmental Modifiers

    • Parenting style, caregiving routines, disciplinary practices, and broader cultural values shape the observable expression of temperamental traits.

    • Evidence indicates both cross-cultural differences and changes over historical time.

  • Nature + Nurture: Research consensus = temperament reflects genetic predispositions modulated by environment (e.g., parenting, cultural norms).

  • Upcoming topic (teaser): How parenting interacts with temperament to influence attachment and subsequent psychosocial development.