Development of Temperament Types From Infancy to Adolescence: Genetic and Environmental Influences With an Economically and Racially/Ethnically Diverse Sample

• Published in: Developmental psychology 2024-11, Vol.60 (11), p.2200-2219
• Main Authors: Murillo, Alexys S., Clifford, Sierra, Cheng, Cheuk Hei, Doane, Leah D., Davis, Mary C., Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent Development; Adolescent girls; Child development; Childhood; Environment; Environmental aspects; Environmental Influences; Etiology; Female; Genetics; Heritability; Human; Individual differences; Infancy; Infant Development; Male; Personality; Personality Development; Poverty; Profiles (Measurement); Reactivity; Resilience; Self regulation; Temperament; Twins; Young Children
• ISSN: 0012-1649; 1939-0599; 1939-0599
• DOI: 10.1037/dev0001828

Kagan theorized biologically based temperament types that are present in infancy, stable across development, and essential for understanding individual differences. Despite evidence, temperament research remains focused on a few prominent dimensions of temperament, without adequately addressing covariance among dimensions and temperament types. Using longitudinal twin data, we took a person-centered statistical approach to identify temperament types and examined continuity and change across five developmental periods (Ninfancy = 602; Ntoddlerhood = 522; Nearly childhood = 390; Nlate childhood = 718; Nearly adolescence = 700). We then examined the genetic and environmental etiology of temperament types. Twins were boys and girls (51-53% female), primarily Hispanic/Latinx (23-30%) and non-Hispanic/Latinx White (56-63%), and from socioeconomically diverse families (28-38% near-or-below the poverty line). Using latent profile analysis, we identified three temperament types at each age characterized by negative reactivity and dysregulation, positive reactivity and strong self-regulation, and moderate reactivity and regulation. Latent transition analyses revealed considerable continuity in membership type for "negative dysregulated" beginning in infancy, log odds = 1.58 (SE = .65) to 3.16 (SE = .77), p < .01, of remaining relative to transitioning to "typical expressive", and "positive well-regulated" beginning in early childhood, log odds = 1.41 (SE = .56) to 2.25 (SE = .47), p < .05. Twin analyses revealed moderate heritability and a consistent role of the shared environment on positive well-regulated, with negative dysregulated and typical expressive also moderately heritable with the shared environment being important at some ages. Findings support the presence of theorized biologically based temperament types that develop rapidly in infancy and toddlerhood and provide a foundation for the study of individual differences and risk and resilience processes across the lifespan. Public Significance Statement Children can be classified into three types based on their temperament: negative dysregulated, positive well-regulated, or typical expressive. These types develop rapidly across infancy and toddlerhood becoming more continuous by early childhood. Types are both heritable and influenced by the early environment, supporting a complex interplay between temperament and sociocultural context when predicting children and adolescent's adaptation.