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Temperament questionnaires in clinical research

T F McNeil, I Persson-Blennow

    Ciba Foundation Symposium
    |January 1, 1982
    PubMed

    Insights

    New parental questionnaires reliably measure infant temperament across multiple ages. While temperament types were stable, individual scores showed moderate change over time, impacting clinical research applications.

    Area of Science:

    • Child Psychology
    • Developmental Psychology
    • Behavioral Science

    Background:

    • Temperament is a crucial aspect of child development.
    • Previous methods for assessing infant temperament had limitations.
    • The New York Longitudinal Study established key temperament variables.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To develop and validate parental questionnaires for measuring infant temperament.
    • To assess the reliability and validity of these new instruments.
    • To examine temperament characteristics in a large, longitudinal sample.

    Main Methods:

    • Development of parental questionnaires for nine temperament variables.
    • Longitudinal study of children at 6, 12, and 24 months.
    • Retest reliability analysis and factor analysis of temperament data.

    Main Results:

    • Questionnaires demonstrated generally satisfactory retest reliability.
    • Temperament showed little relation to gender, birth order, or social class.
    • Two stable temperament patterns emerged at 12 and 24 months; score stability was low to moderate.

    Conclusions:

    • Parental questionnaires are a reliable tool for assessing infant temperament.
    • Infant temperament types are relatively stable, but individual scores can change.
    • Findings support the use of these questionnaires in clinical research.

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