Personality Types in Childhood: Relations to Latent Trajectory Classes of Problem Behavior and Overreactive Parenting Across the Transition Into Adolescence

• Published in: Journal of personality and social psychology 2013-04, Vol.104 (4), p.750-764
• Main Authors: Van den Akker, Alithe L., Deković, Maja, Asscher, Jessica J., Shiner, Rebecca L., Prinzie, Peter
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adjustment Disorders - diagnosis; Adjustment Disorders - psychology; Adolescence; Adolescent; Adolescents; Adult; Behavior disorders; Behavior Problems; Character; Child Behavior Disorders - diagnosis; Child Behavior Disorders - psychology; Child development; Childhood; Childrearing Practices; Children; Externalization; Externalizing problems; Externalizing Symptoms; Family Conflict - psychology; Family relations; Father-Child Relations; Fathers; Female; Human; Humans; Internal-External Control; Internalization; Internalizing problems; Interpersonal Interaction; Male; Middle Aged; Models, Psychological; Mother-Child Relations; Mothers; Parenting; Parenting - psychology; Parenting Style; Parents & parenting; Personality; Personality Assessment; Personality development; Personality Traits; Puberty - psychology; Resilience, Psychological; Risk; Risk Factors; Social psychology; Symptoms
• ISSN: 0022-3514; 1939-1315
• DOI: 10.1037/a0031184

This study investigated relations among children's personality types, trajectories of internalizing and externalizing problems, and overreactive parenting across 6 years. Latent Class Analysis of the Big 5 personality dimensions (modeled as latent factors, based on mother, father and teacher reports) for 429 children (mean age 8 years at Time 1) replicated the Resilient, Under-, and Overcontroller types. Latent Class Growth Analysis of externalizing and internalizing problems (modeled as latent factors, based on mother and father reports), revealed that Undercontrollers were at greater risk of belonging to a high/decreasing externalizing problem class and a high/stable co-occurring problem class than were Resilients. Overcontrollers were more likely to be in a high/stable internalizing class and less likely to be in the externalizing problem class, but only at low levels of parental overreactivity. Undercontrollers appeared at double risk as they were at risk for high overreactive parenting, which was an independent risk-factor for the elevated problem trajectories. Because childhood personality types were a risk factor for adjustment problems that persisted into adolescence, Under- and Overcontrollers might be considered as a target for early intervention, with a focus on overreactive parenting for Undercontrollers specifically.