Studying temperament and parent-child interaction: comparison of interview and direct observation

Comparison between ratings of children's temperament from maternal interview and ratings by an observer in a sample of 40 families showed a high rate of agreement for temperament traits other than that of activity. When the temperatment assessment by maternal interview was compared with the data from direct observation of the child, the results provided some validation for the temperament assessment interview ratings, and also showed that differences in maternal behaviour were associated with the reported differences in child temperament. Some agreement was found between the data from direct observation of the families, and the description by mothers of the behaviour of their first-born children after the birth of a sibling.