Editing Temperament (section)

== Main models ==

===Four temperaments model===
Historically, in the second century AD, the physician [[Galen]] described [[four temperaments|four classical temperaments]] (melancholic, phlegmatic, sanguine and choleric), corresponding to the [[four humors]] or bodily fluids.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/temperament|title = Temperament &#124; personality}}</ref> This historical concept was explored by [[philosopher]]s, [[psychologist]]s, [[psychiatrist]]s and psycho-physiologists from very early times of psychological science, with theories proposed by [[Immanuel Kant]], [[Hermann Lotze]], [[Ivan Pavlov]], [[Carl Jung]], [[Gerardus Heymans]] among others. In more recent history, [[Rudolf Steiner]] had emphasized the importance of the [[four humours|four classical temperaments]] in elementary education, the time when he believed the influence of temperament on the personality to be at its strongest.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/FourTemps/ForTem_index.html|title=The Four Temperaments: Lecture in Berlin|last=Steiner|first=Rudolf |year=1909|access-date=2009-04-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Steiner|first=Rudolf|title=The Four Temperaments|isbn=978-0-910142-11-3|year=1985}}</ref> Neither Galen nor Steiner are generally applied to the contemporary study of temperament in the approaches of modern medicine or contemporary psychology.

===Rusalov-Trofimova neurophysiological model of temperament===

This model  based on the longest tradition of neurophysiological experiments started within the investigations of types and properties of nervous systems by [[Ivan Pavlov]]'s school. This experimental tradition started on studies with animals in 1910–20s but expanded its methodology to humans since 1930s and especially since 1960s, including EEG, caffeine tests, evoked potentials, behavioral tasks and other psychophysiological methods.<ref name=Rusal2018>{{cite journal |last1=Rusalov |first1=Vladimir |title=Functional systems theory and the activity-specific approach in psychological taxonomies |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |date=26 February 2018 |volume=373 |issue=1744 |pages=20170166 |doi=10.1098/rstb.2017.0166|pmid=29483350 |pmc=5832690 }}</ref>

The latest version of this model is based on the "[[Activity-specific approach in temperament research]], on [[Alexander Luria]]'s research in clinical neurophysiology and on the neurochemical model [[Functional Ensemble of Temperament]].<ref name=FET/><ref name=TroRob/><ref name=Tro2018/> At the present time the model is associated with the [[Structure of Temperament Questionnaire]] and has 12 scales:

====Endurance-related scales====
* Motor-physical Endurance: the ability of an individual to sustain prolonged physical activity using well-defined behavioral elements
* Social-verbal Endurance (sociability): the ability of an individual to sustain prolonged social-verbal activities using well-defined behavioral elements.
* Mental Endurance, or Attention: the ability to stay focused on selected features of objects with suppression of behavioral reactivity to other features.

====Scales related to speed of integration of behavior====
* Motor-physical Tempo: speed of integration of an action in physical manipulations with objects with well-defined scripts of actions
* Plasticity: the ability to adapt quickly to changes in situations, to change the program of action, and to shift between different tasks
* Social-verbal Tempo: the preferred speed of speech and ability to understand fast speech on well-known topics, reading and sorting of known verbal material

====Scales related to type of orientation of behavior====
* Sensation Seeking (SS): behavioral orientation to well-defined and existing sensational objects and events, underestimation of outcomes of risky behavior.
* Empathy: behavioral orientation to the emotional states/needs of others (ranging from empathic deafness in autism and schizophrenia disorders to social dependency).
* Sensitivity to Probabilities: the drive to gather information about uniqueness, frequency and values of objects/events, to differentiate their specific features, to project these features in future actions.

====Emotionality scales====
* Satisfaction (Self-Confidence): A disposition to be satisfied with current state of events, a sense of security, confidence in the future. In spite of the optimism about outcomes of his or her activities, the respondent might be negligent in details.
* Impulsivity: Initiation of actions based on immediate emotional reactivity rather than by planning or rational reasoning.
* Neuroticism: A tendency to avoid novelty, unpredictable situations and uncertainty. Preference of well-known settings and people over unknown ones and a need for approval and feedback from people around.

===Kagan's research===

[[Jerome Kagan]] and his colleagues have concentrated empirical research on a temperamental category termed "reactivity." Four-month-old infants who became "motorically aroused and distressed" to presentations of novel stimuli were termed ''highly reactive''. Those who remained "motorically relaxed and did not cry or fret to the same set of unfamiliar events" were termed ''low reactive''.<ref name=Kagan2>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.2307/1131931 | last1 = Kagan | first1 = J. | year = 1997 | title = Temperament and the reactions to unfamiliarity| journal = Child Development | volume = 68 | issue = 1| pages = 139–143 | pmid = 9084130 | jstor = 1131931 | url = http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:37980692 }}</ref> These high and low reactive infants were tested again at 14 and 21 months "in a variety of unfamiliar laboratory situations." Highly reactive infants were predominantly characterized by a profile of high fear to unfamiliar events, which Kagan termed inhibited. Contrastingly, low reactive children were minimally fearful to novel situations, and were characterized by an uninhibited profile (Kagan). However, when observed again at age 4.5, only a modest proportion of children maintained their expected profile due to mediating factors such as intervening family experiences. Those who remained highly inhibited or uninhibited after age 4.5 were at higher risk for developing anxiety and conduct disorders, respectively.<ref name=Kagan/>

Kagan also used two additional classifications, one for infants who were inactive but cried frequently (distressed) and one for those who showed vigorous activity but little crying (aroused). Followed to age 14–17 years, these groups of children showed differing outcomes, including some differences in central nervous system activity. Teenagers who had been classed as high reactives when they were babies were more likely to be "subdued in unfamiliar situations, to report a dour mood and anxiety over the future, [and] to be more religious."<ref>{{cite journal |jstor=30163598|title=The Preservation of Two Infant Temperaments into Adolescence|journal=Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development|volume=72|issue=2|pages=i–95|last1=Kagan|first1=Jerome|last2=Snidman|first2=Nancy|last3=Kahn|first3=Vali|last4=Towsley|first4=Sara|last5=Steinberg|first5=Laurence|last6=Fox|first6=Nathan A|year=2007}}</ref>

===Thomas and Chess's nine temperament characteristics===

Alexander Thomas, [[Stella Chess]], Herbert G. Birch, Margaret Hertzig and Sam Korn began the classic New York Longitudinal study in the early 1950s regarding infant temperament (Thomas, Chess & Birch, 1968). The study focused on how temperamental qualities influence adjustment throughout life. Chess, Thomas et al. rated young infants on nine temperament characteristics, each of which, by itself, or with connection to another, affects how well a child fits in at school, with their friends, and at home. Behaviors for each one of these traits are on a [[Continuum (measurement)|continuum]]. If a child leans towards the high or low end of the scale, it could be a cause for concern. The specific behaviors are: activity level, regularity of [[sleep]]ing and [[eating]] patterns, initial reaction, adaptability, intensity of [[emotion]], [[Mood (psychology)|mood]], distractibility, persistence and [[attention span]], and sensory sensitivity. Redundancies between the categories have been found and a reduced list is normally used by psychologists today.<ref name=IReview>{{cite journal |last1=Zentner |first1=Marcel |last2=Bates |first2=John E. |title=Child Temperament: An Integrative Review of Concepts, Research Programs, and Measures |journal=International Journal of Developmental Science |date=1 January 2008 |volume=2 |issue=1–2 |pages=7–37 |citeseerx=10.1.1.598.1517 |doi=10.3233/DEV-2008-21203 }}</ref>

Research by Thomas and Chess used the following nine temperament traits in children<ref name=psychpage>{{cite web|url=http://www.psychpage.com/family/library/temperm.htm|title=PsychPage.com Child Temperament|access-date=2009-04-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.asp?r=495 |title=Your Child's Temperament: Some Basics |last=Firchow |first=Nancy M.L.S. |access-date=2009-04-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517192806/http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.asp?r=495 |archive-date=May 17, 2006 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ohioline.osu.edu/flm02/FS05.html|title=Ohio State University Extension: Understanding Your Child's Temperament|access-date=2009-04-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421053122/http://ohioline.osu.edu/flm02/FS05.html|archive-date=2009-04-21|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/htmpubs/4358.htm|title=University of Maine Cooperative Extension: Family Issues Facts|access-date=2009-04-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090107202309/http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/htmpubs/4358.htm|archive-date=2009-01-07|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/development/temperament_personality.html|title=KeepKidsHealthy.com Temperament and Personality|access-date=2009-04-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207202359/http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/development/temperament_personality.html|archive-date=2009-02-07|url-status=dead}}</ref> based on a classification scheme developed by Dr. Herbert Birch:<ref>Stella Chess and Alexander Thomas, ''Temperament'', Routledge: 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-87630-835-6}}. p. 31</ref> Thomas, Chess, Birch, Hertzig and Korn found that many babies could be categorized into one of three groups: ''easy'', ''difficult'', and ''slow-to-warm-up'' (Thomas & Chess 1977).<ref name=psychpage/> Not all children can be placed in one of these groups. Approximately 65% of children fit one of the patterns. Of the 65%, 40% fit the easy pattern, 10% fell into the difficult pattern, and 15% were slow to warm up. Each category has its own strength and weakness and one is not superior to another.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.rookieparenting.com/raising-children-temperament-personality/ | title=Raising Children – Temperament and Personality | publisher=Rookie Parenting | date=29 September 2014 | access-date=12 October 2014}}</ref>

Thomas, Chess, Birch, Hertzig and Korn showed that ''easy'' babies readily adapt to new experiences, generally display positive moods and emotions and also have normal eating and sleeping patterns. ''Difficult'' babies tend to be very emotional, irritable and fussy, and cry a lot. They also tend to have irregular eating and sleeping patterns. ''Slow-to-warm-up'' babies have a low activity level, and tend to withdraw from new situations and people. They are slow to adapt to new experiences, but accept them after repeated exposure.

Thomas, Chess, Birch, Hertzig and Korn found that these broad patterns of temperamental qualities are remarkably stable through childhood. These traits are also found in children across all cultures.

Thomas and Chess also studied temperament and environment. One sample consisted of white middle-class families with high educational status and the other was of Puerto Rican working-class families. They found several differences. Among those were:<ref name=psychpage/>

* Parents of middle class children were more likely to report behavior problems before the age of nine and the children had sleep problems. This may be because children start preschool between the ages of three and four. Puerto Rican children under the age of five showed rare signs of sleep problems, however, sleep problems became more common at the age of six.
* Middle-class parents also placed great stress on the child's early development, believing that problems in early ages were indicative of later problems in psychological development, whereas Puerto Rican parents felt their children would outgrow any problems.
* At the age of nine, the report of new problems dropped for middle class children but they rose in Puerto Rican children, possibly due to the demands of school.

Observed traits:

* Activity: refers to the child's physical energy. Is the child constantly moving, or does the child have a relaxing approach? A high-energy child may have difficulty sitting still in class, whereas a child with low energy can tolerate a very structured environment. The former may use gross motor skills like running and jumping more frequently. Conversely, a child with a lower activity level may rely more on fine motor skills, such as drawing and putting puzzles together. This trait can also refer to mental activity, such as deep thinking or reading&mdash;activities which become more significant as the person matures.
* Regularity: also known as ''rhythmicity'', refers to the level of predictability in a child's biological functions, such as waking, becoming tired, hunger, and bowel movements. Does the child have a routine in eating and sleeping habits, or are these events more random? For example, a child with a high regularity rating may want to eat at 2&nbsp;p.m. every day, whereas a child lower on the regularity scale may eat at sporadic times throughout the day.
* Initial reaction: also known as ''approach or withdrawal''. This refers to how the child responds (whether positively or negatively) to new people or environments. Does the child approach people or things in the environment without hesitation, or does the child shy away? A bold child tends to approach things quickly, as if without thinking, whereas a cautious child typically prefers to watch for a while before engaging in new experiences.
* Adaptability: refers to how long it takes the child to adjust to change over time (as opposed to an initial reaction). Does the child adjust to the changes in their environment easily, or is the child resistant? A child who adjusts easily may be quick to settle into a new routine, whereas a resistant child may take a long time to adjust to the situation.
*Intensity: refers to the energy level of a positive or negative response. Does the child react intensely to a situation, or does the child respond in a calm and quiet manner? A more intense child may jump up and down screaming with excitement, whereas a mild-mannered child may smile or show no emotion.
* Mood: refers to the child's general tendency towards a happy or unhappy demeanor. All children have a variety of emotions and reactions, such as cheerful and stormy, happy and unhappy. Yet each child biologically tends to have a generally positive or negative outlook. A baby who frequently smiles and coos could be considered a cheerful baby, whereas a baby who frequently cries or fusses might be considered a stormy baby.
*Distractibility: refers to the child's tendency to be sidetracked by other things going on around them. Does the child get easily distracted by what is happening in the environment, or can the child concentrate despite the interruptions? An easily distracted child is engaged by external events and has difficulty returning to the task at hand, whereas a rarely distracted child stays focused and completes the task at hand.
*Persistence and attention span: refer to the child's length of time on a task and ability to stay with the task through frustrations—whether the child stays with an activity for a long period of time or loses interest quickly.
*Sensitivity: refers to how easily a child is disturbed by changes in the environment. This is also called '''sensory threshold''' or '''threshold of responsiveness'''. Is the child bothered by external stimuli like noises, textures, or lights, or does the child seem to ignore them? A sensitive child may lose focus when a door slams, whereas a child less sensitive to external noises will be able to maintain focus.

===Mary K. Rothbart's three dimensions of temperament===
[[Mary K. Rothbart]] views temperament as the individual personality differences in infants and young children that are present prior to the development of higher [[Cognition|cognitive]] and social aspects of [[Personality psychology|personality]].<ref name="Rothbart and Hwang">{{cite book|author1=Rothbart, M.K  |author2=Hwang, J. |name-list-style=amp |title=Temperament and the development of competence and motivation. In A.J. Elliot & A.C. Dweck (Eds.), Handbook of competence and motivation|publisher=Guilford Press|location=New York| year = 2005 |isbn=978-1-59385-606-9|pages=167–184|url=http://www.guilford.com/cgi-bin/cartscript.cgi?page=pr/elliot3.htm&dir=pp/sapp&cart_id=471466.23602}}</ref> Rothbart further defines temperament as individual differences in reactivity and self-regulation that manifest in the domains of emotion, activity and attention. Moving away from classifying infants into categories, Mary Rothbart identified three underlying dimensions of temperament.<ref name="Kail and Barnfield">{{cite book |vauthors=Kail RV, Barnfield A | title = Children and Their Development, Second Canadian Edition with MyDevelopmentLab | publisher = Pearson Education Canada | location = Toronto | year = 2011 | isbn = 978-0-13-255770-2 }}</ref> Using [[factor analysis]] on data from 3- to 12-month-old children, three broad factors emerged and were labeled surgency/extraversion, negative affect, and effortful control.<ref name="Rothbart and Hwang" />

====Surgency/extraversion====
[[Surgency]]/extraversion includes positive anticipation, [[impulsivity]], increased levels of activity and a desire for sensation seeking.<ref name="Rothbart in Merrill">{{cite journal|last=Rothbart|first=M K|title=Temperament and the pursuit of an integrated developmental psychology|journal=Merrill-Palmer Quarterly|date=Oct 2004|volume=50|issue=4|pages=492–505|url=http://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/mpq/vol50/iss4/7|doi=10.1353/mpq.2004.0035|s2cid=144970654|url-access=subscription}}</ref> This factor reflects the degree to which a child is generally happy, active, and enjoys vocalizing and seeking stimulation.<ref name="Kail and Barnfield" /> Increased levels of smiling and laughter are observed in babies high in surgency/extraversion.<ref name="Rothbart and Hwang" /> 10- to 11-year-olds with higher levels of surgency/extraversion are more likely to develop externalizing problems like acting out; however, they are less likely to develop internalizing problems such as [[shyness]] and low [[self-esteem]].<ref name=Ormel>{{cite journal|pmid=16300695|doi=10.1017/S0033291705005829|year=2005|last1=Ormel|first1=J|title=Internalizing and externalizing problems in adolescence: General and dimension-specific effects of familial loadings and preadolescent temperament traits|journal=Psychological Medicine|volume=35|issue=12|pages=1825–35|last2=Oldehinkel|first2=A. J|last3=Ferdinand|first3=R. F|last4=Hartman|first4=C. A|last5=De Winter|first5=A. F|last6=Veenstra|first6=R|last7=Vollebergh|first7=W|last8=Minderaa|first8=R. B|last9=Buitelaar|first9=J. K|last10=Verhulst|first10=F. C|s2cid=10109488}}</ref>

====Negative affect====
Negative affect includes [[fear]], [[frustration]], [[sadness]], discomfort,<ref name="Rothbart in Merrill" /> and [[anger]].<ref name="Rothbart and Hwang" /> This factor reflects the degree to which a child is shy and not easily calmed.<ref name="Kail and Barnfield" /> Anger and frustration is seen as early as 2 to 3 months of age. Anger and frustration, together, predict externalizing and internalizing difficulties. Anger, alone, is later related to externalizing problems, while fear is associated with internalizing difficulties.  Fear as evidenced by behavioral inhibition is seen as early as 7–10 months of age, and later predicts children's fearfulness and lower levels of [[aggression]].<ref name="Rothbart, 2007">{{cite journal|last=Rothbart|first=M. K.|title=Temperament, development and personality|journal=Current Directions in Psychological Science|year=2007|volume=16|issue=4|pages=207–212|doi=10.1111/j.1467-8721.2007.00505.x|s2cid=15994633|url=http://brainstormquestions.wikispaces.com/file/view/Rothbart+-+Temperament,+Development+and+Personality.pdf}}</ref>

====Effortful control====
Effortful control includes the focusing and shifting of [[attention]], inhibitory control, perceptual sensitivity, and a low threshold for pleasure.<ref name="Rothbart in Merrill" /> This factor reflects the degree to which a child can focus attention, is not easily distracted,<ref name="Kail and Barnfield" /> can restrain a dominant response in order to execute a non-dominant response, and employ planning. When high in effortful control, six- to seven-year-olds tend to be more [[Empathy|empathetic]] and lower in aggressiveness.<ref name="Rothbart in Merrill" /> Higher levels of effortful control at age seven also predict lower externalizing problems at age 11 years.<ref name=Valiente>{{cite journal|pmid=14633062|doi=10.1111/1467-6494.7106011|year=2003|last1=Valiente|first1=C|title=The relations of effortful control and reactive control to children's externalizing problems: A longitudinal assessment|journal=Journal of Personality|volume=71|issue=6|pages=1171–96|last2=Eisenberg|first2=N|last3=Smith|first3=C. L|last4=Reiser|first4=M|last5=Fabes|first5=R. A|last6=Losoya|first6=S|last7=Guthrie|first7=I. K|last8=Murphy|first8=B. C}}</ref> Children high on negative affect show decreased internalizing and externalizing problems when they are also high on effortful control.<ref name="Rothbart, 2007" /> Rothbart suggests that effortful control is dependent on the development of executive attention skills in the early years. In turn, executive attention skills allows greater self-control over reactive tendencies. Effortful control shows stability from infancy into the school years<ref name="Rothbart, 2007" /> and also predicts [[conscience]].<ref name="Kochanska et al.">{{cite journal|pmid=10749079|doi=10.1037/0012-1649.36.2.220|year=2000|last1=Kochanska|first1=G|title=Effortful control in early childhood: Continuity and change, antecedents, and implications for social development|journal=Developmental Psychology|volume=36|issue=2|pages=220–32|last2=Murray|first2=K. T|last3=Harlan|first3=E. T}}</ref>

===Others===

Solomon Diamond described temperaments based upon characteristics found in the animal world: fearfulness, aggressiveness, affiliativeness, and impulsiveness. His work has been carried forward by [[Arnold Buss]] and [[Robert Plomin]], who developed two measures of temperament: The Colorado Child Temperament Inventory, which includes aspects of Thomas and Chess's schema, and the [[EAS Survey for Children]].<ref name=IReview/>

H. Hill Goldsmith and Joseph Campos used emotional characteristics to define temperament, originally analyzing five emotional qualities: motor activity, anger, fearfulness, pleasure/joy, and interest/persistence, but later expanding to include other emotions. They developed several measures of temperament: Lab-TAB and TBAQ.<ref name=IReview/>

Other temperament systems include those based upon theories of adult temperament (e.g. Gray and Martin's Temperament Assessment Battery for Children), or adult personality (e.g.the Big Five personality traits).