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Infant temperament and noncompliant behavior at four years: a longitudinal study
Insights
Child temperament, particularly infant fussiness, strongly predicts physical noncompliance. Maternal factors and child temperament interact to influence verbal and passive noncompliance in early childhood.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Noncompliant behavior in early childhood, characterized by age-appropriate negativism, is understudied.
- Understanding the factors contributing to noncompliance is crucial for early intervention and support.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate preschool temperament and maternal behavior as correlates of negativistic behavior at age 4.
- To examine early maternal characteristics and infant temperament as etiological factors in childhood negativism.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 62 mother-child dyads across social classes.
- Data collection included home observations, temperament questionnaires, and interviews from birth to age 4.
Main Results:
- Infant and childhood temperament, especially fussiness, significantly predicts physical noncompliance.
- Maternal warmth, closeness, verbal directiveness, and child variables predict verbal noncompliance.
- Demographic variables, temperament, and maternal attitudes predict passive noncompliance.
Conclusions:
- Childhood noncompliance is a complex behavior resulting from the interaction of constitutional (temperament) and environmental (maternal, demographic) factors.
- Physical noncompliance appears primarily influenced by innate temperament, while verbal and passive forms involve broader interactions.
Abstract:
Noncompliant behavior in early childhood (i.e., exaggerated, but age-appropriate negativism) has been inadequately studied. This longitudinal study explores preschool temperament and maternal behavior as current correlates of negativistic behavior at age 4, and early maternal characteristics and infant temperament as etiological variables in the production of negativism. Longitudinal evidence was collected from 62 mother-child dyads, representative of all social classes. This evidence included home observations of maternal and child behavior at 4 years, a temperament questionnaire at 4 years, a questionnaire about infant temperament, and observational and interview measures at various stages from birth to 3 years, of infant behavior and maternal characteristics. The findings suggest that infant and childhood temperament (especially the degree of infant fussiness) are highly predictive of physical noncompliance, and that physical noncompliance is unrelated to maternal or demographic variables. A combination of maternal variables including warmth, closeness, and verbal directiveness, both positive and negative, as well as child variables, predict verbal noncompliance. Demographic variables, temperament, and maternal attitudes predict passive noncompliance. Noncompliance is viewed as a complex phenomenon in which constitutional and environmental variables interact.