Personality differences in childhood and adolescence: measurement, development, and consequences.

Full Abstract

Child psychologists and psychiatrists are interested in assessing children's personalities. This interest is fueled by the practical desire to identify differences between children that have predictive utility, and by recognition that future advances in developmental theory, especially in relation to gene-environment interplay, can only be as good as the measures on which they rely. The aim of this article is to facilitate these practical and theoretical advances. First, we delineate a taxonomy of measurable individual differences in temperament and personality in childhood, and point the reader to proven and/or promising measuring instruments. Second, we describe the processes through which early temperament differences may become elaborated into adult personality structure and lifelong adaptation, and identify gaps in the empirical research that need to be filled. Third, we explore the various connections between temperament/ personality traits and psychopathology, and direct attention to promising questions and strategies.

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Author information

Author/s: Shiner, Rebecca (R); Caspi, Avshalom (A);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Colgate University, Hamilton, NY 13346, USA. rshiner(-atsign-)mail.colgate.edu

Grants: MH-45070 (Agency:NIMH NIH HHS) ; MH-49414 (Agency:NIMH NIH HHS)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.; Review

Journal: Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines (J Child Psychol Psychiatry), published in England. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2003-Jan; vol 44 (issue 1) : pp 2-32

Dates: Created 2003/01/29; Completed 2003/05/01; Revised 2007/11/14;

PMID: 12553411, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Achievement
Adolescent
Child
Friends
Humans

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