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How Are Traits Related to Problem Behavior in Preschoolers? Similarities and Contrasts Between Temperament and Personality

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Abstract

The lack of empirical research relating temperament models and personality hinders conceptual integration and holds back research linking childhood traits to problem behavior or maladjustment. This study evaluates, within a sample of 443 preschoolers, the relationships between children’s maladaptation and traits measured by three temperament models (Thomas and Chess, Buss and Plomin, and Rothbart), and a Five-Factor based personality model. Adequate reliabilities and expected factor structures are demonstrated for most scales. A joint principal component analysis combining 28 temperament and 18 personality scales indicates a six-factor model, distinguishing Sociability, Activity, Conscientiousness, Disagreeableness, Emotionality, and Sensitivity. Regression analyses reveal that although single temperament and personality scales explain from 23% to 37% of problem behavior variance, the six components explain from 41% to 49% and provide a clearer differentiation among CBCL-problem scales. This age-specific taxonomy refines and corroborates conclusions based on narrative reviews and furnishes a more balanced view of trait–maladjustment relationships.

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Notes

  1. In the Flemish community of Belgium, almost 100% of the children access kindergarten from age 3.

  2. Consequently, analyses including these temperament scales are based on a varying N.

  3. Analyses of variance revealed no significant mean differences (p < 0.05) between mothers and fathers ratings of problem behavior. Adopting the p < .01 level, no differences were found between paternal and maternal ratings of temperament and personality. When the threshold was set to p < 0.05, two differences were found: Fathers rated their preschoolers lower on CBQ-Effortful Control (F(1, 265) = 5.54, p = 0.02) and on BSQ-Threshold/Distractibility (F(1, 246) = 5.97, p = 0.02).

  4. Reports of the described analyses are available upon request with the first author.

  5. Given the low internal consistencies of the BSQ-Threshold and BSQ-Regularity scale, it is possible that these two scales load on a common factor due to their shared, low reliability. Secondary principal component analyses were conducted excluding these two scales, but this did not alter the results as the second BSQ-component still combines Distractibility and Intensity of reaction. Principal axis factoring yielded an identical factor solution.

  6. In line with previous empirical research on the common structure of temperament and personality (Angleitner and Ostendorf 1994; Digman and Shmelyov 1996), we applied principal component analysis with varimax rotation in order to create orthogonal trait components and to avoid multicollinearity of predictors in the subsequent multiple regressions. Correlation coefficients for each pair of variables were computed based on all cases with valid data for that pair (N = 248–432).

  7. An additional joint principal component analysis, excluding the 23 children with an elevated score on the CBCL Total Problems scale, did not alter the documented six-factor solution. In subsequent analyses, we omitted children with significantly elevated scores on CBCL broadband scales. Again, dropping these children did not yield major changes of factor structure.

  8. The path analyses are only based on Sample 2 data.

  9. In order to find alternative paths, we also adopted a bottom-up approach sequentially dropping arrows from the fully-saturated model. In addition, modification indices were inspected that allowed to improve the fit of the model. In this way, we identified one competitive model which included an additional path between Conscientiousness and Internalizing. Goodness-of-fit indices were almost equal to the original model, but the ratio χ 2/df was less favorable for this model (0.44) than for the original model (0.74). Both models did not differ significantly from a model where all paths between traits and psychopathology were freed: original top-down model: χ 2Δ (27, N = 186) = 19.96, p > 0.05, alternative model: χ 2Δ (26, N = 186) = 11.54, p > 0.05. For reasons of parsimony and fit excellence, in addition to its theoretical basis, the original model was preferred.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by a Ph.D. research grant awarded by the Research Foundation Flanders to the first author (Grant nr: 1.1.212.08.N.01) under supervision of the second author.

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  1. Department of Developmental, Personality and Social Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, B-9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Sarah S. W. De Pauw & Ivan Mervielde

  2. Centre for Parenting, Child Welfare and Disabilities, Catholic University of Louvain, Andreas Vesaliusstraat 2 - box 3765, 3000, Louvain, Belgium

    Karla G. Van Leeuwen

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  1. Sarah S. W. De Pauw
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  3. Karla G. Van Leeuwen
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De Pauw, S.S.W., Mervielde, I. & Van Leeuwen, K.G. How Are Traits Related to Problem Behavior in Preschoolers? Similarities and Contrasts Between Temperament and Personality. J Abnorm Child Psychol 37, 309–325 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-008-9290-0

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