Synonyms
Definition
Theories of temperament demonstrate lack of agreement regarding the definition of this psychological construct. However, there are some features in describing the notion on which the majority of researchers agree.
Temperament (a) is a component of personality, (b) is present since early infancy, (c) has a biological background, (d) is partially genetically determined, (e) is considerably stable as compared to other personality characteristics, and (f) is present also in animals.
Introduction
A short history of the understanding of temperament will precede the contemporary studies on this psychological construct conducted during the first decades of the twentieth century. These studies have their beginning in Europe (Ivan Pavlov and his followers in Russia, Gerhard Heymans in the Netherlands, and Hans Eysenck in the United Kingdom) and in...
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Strelau, J. (2018). Temperament. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_446-1
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