If you are a parent to more than one child then you already know that each child is different even though they are raised in the same home. From the very beginning, that is from pregnancy, your experiences are all different with your children and the newborns already show distinct styles of responding to the environment. Each of them has their own individual infant temperament.

What Is Temperament?

Temperament refers to consistent individual differences in behavior which determines how they react to different situations, to the environment and how they express or regulate emotions. From infancy parents are able to see the variation in emotional responses and reaction to the environment of their child.

Children from the same parents can have different temperaments. You cannot really change a child’s temperament but by understanding your child’s temperament, you may be able to change your own expectations and responses to it and to a certain extent change the way it is expressed.

There are different categorizations of temperament by different researchers dating back as far as Hippocrates (460–370 BC) but the most influential research was conducted by Chess and Thomas in their New York longitudinal study that lasted for three decades. So I will be using that as a point of reference to further explain what temperament is and what it entails.

According to Chess and Thomas children vary on nine dimensions of temperament and researchers were able to further breakdown and classify these nine dimensions into three temperament styles.

The nine dimensions of temperament:

1. Activity – This refers to the level and extent of motor activity of your child. Some children have difficulty sitting still and are always on the go while some children prefer quiet activities.
2. Regularity – This refers to the rhythmicity, predictability, or degree of regularity, of biological functions such as appetite, elimination and the cycle of sleeping and wakefulness. For parents that are big on routine knowledge of this factor will help set up a routine that will fit your child. I have seen many parents struggle in this regard because they are simply forcing something on the assumption that every child will react the same.
3. Initial reaction – This refers to the response to a new object, situation, environment or person, in terms of whether the child approaches the new experience eagerly or withdraws or is hesitant and resistant. This is helpful knowledge for when life changes happen, you are better prepared to help your child transition accordingly.
4. Adaptability – This refers to the adaptability of behavior in relation to changes in the environment. It is about how easily a child adapts to transitions and changes, like starting crèche or school or changes in caregivers etc. It is also about the ability/flexibility to adapt to changes in routines.
5. Sensitivity – This refers to the threshold, or sensitivity to stimuli. Some children are not bothered when shouted at yet others will have a meltdown. Sensitivity encompasses all the senses and your child’s threshold to these that is smell, sound, taste, sight etc. and how positively or negatively it affects them.
6. Intensity – This refers to the intensity, or energy level of responses. The energy level of a response is either positive or negative.
7. Mood – This refers to the child’s general mood or disposition, whether cheerful or given to crying, pleasant or cranky, friendly or unfriendly. It is the tendency to react to the world primarily in a positive or negative way meaning generally some children will focus on the negatives whilst others on the positives.
8. Distractibility – This refers to the degree of the child’s distractibility or concentration from what they are doing. Some infants are easily distracted by sounds or sights while feeding while others are not bothered at all. Some infants or children are easily soothed when upset by being redirected to another activity while others it is a mission to soothe them and they cannot be easily redirected. High distractibility is seen as positive when it is easy to divert a child from an undesirable behavior but seen as negative when it prevents the child from finishing school work or other important activities.
9. Persistence – This refers to the length of time a child continues in activities in the face of obstacles. For example will your child continue to work on a puzzle when he has difficulty with it or does he just move on to another easier activity? It also has to do with a child being able to wait to have their needs met, some children are just impatient. This is really a tricky trait depending on when it is applied for example, when a child persists on an activity he has been asked to stop, he is labeled as stubborn while a self-initiated child who persist on working on a tough puzzle can also
10. be seen as patient.
11. As mentioned above researchers were able to further breakdown and classify these nine dimensions into three temperament styles.

The three types of children temperament styles are:

 Easy temperament – characterized by an ability to self-regulate bodily functions like mood, positive approach to new situations, adaptability, positive mood and non-intense reaction to stimuli. Raising these children is relatively easy because they respond favorably to various parenting styles. Up to about 40 percent of children fall into this temperament category.

 Difficult temperament – characterized by irregular bodily functions, withdrawal, hesitance and resistance to new situations. Very slow to adapt, negative mood, and intense reaction. Most difficult children start off as difficult babies with an intense and highly reactive temperament and tend to cry a lot and are difficult to soothe. It is hard to get them to fall asleep and stay asleep. When they wake up in the middle of the night, they have trouble going back to sleep. This does not mean ‘difficult’ in the true sense of the word because these children just react to the world with high energy and intensity that can be overwhelming, exhausting and sometimes frustrating for the parents and caregivers. Between 5-10 percent of children have a difficult temperament.

 Slow to warm up temperament – This is characterized by low activity level and low intensity of reaction although they also have a tendency to withdraw from new situations, slow adaptability and somewhat negative in the mood. These children can adapt to new situations if they’re allowed to do that at their own pace. Between 10-15 percent of babies, toddlers, and preschoolers fall into this category and some experience separation anxiety.

Mixed traits – Up to 40 percent of children have a mix of these temperaments.

Is there a difference between temperament and personality?

Some people refer to temperament and personality as one and the same thing but there is a distinction, temperament refers to the combination of mental, physical and emotional traits of a person that are in- born (natural predisposition). On the other hand personality is determined by not only your temperament, but other factors come into play such as education, socialization, culture, experiences, role models etc. The long and short of it is, temperament explains the ‘how’, in this case the biology of behavior and personality explains the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ the behavior is expressed. Personality is built over time and as much as a person might have a genetic predisposition to a certain trait it doesn’t mean it will be expressed (you might also want to check my other article on Epigenetics – how the outside environment can change genetic expression). Therefore identifying the temperament qualities that affect the development of personality in infancy and early childhood is of significant importance in child development.

A Few Points to Ponder for Parents

 As a parent, it is important to understand your child’s individual temperament and matching it to your parenting style, unfortunately there is no ‘one size fits all’ in this regard.

 It is also important to check how well your child’s temperament fits with his or her environment (especially school) as it plays a significant role in a child’s self-esteem and success. This is more important for children that struggle with adaptability. I have seen this in my experience of working with children where the problem a child experiences at school was clearly a result of a mismatch in temperaments and personality between a teacher and a child.

 The relationship and influence between temperament and parenting is bi-directional. Difficult temperaments tend to elicit a tough response and inconsistent discipline from parents. Once you understand your child’s temperament, it is easier to build a relationship that will foster the optimal development of your child.

 According to the Diathesis-Stress Model, people who have a predisposition or vulnerabilities to suffer from a psychological disorder require a lower threshold to trigger the disorder. So if there are certain disorders in the family e.g. depression, anxiety you might want to provide an environment that will cushion your children from developing these and matching your parenting style in such a way that you do not trigger any disorders.

 As mentioned above that there is a difference between temperament and personality, so be mindful that your child’s temperament alone does not determine your child’s outcome in their adult life. Do not box them as ‘stubborn’ or ‘difficult’ etc. rather offer, create and expose them to opportunities for positive growth and self-discovery.

 Accept that all children are different and unique in their own way, do not expect them to be like a sibling or someone else. If expectations do not match a child’s temperament, a parent’s reactions can actually exaggerate a child’s behavioral and emotional difficulties, leading to a deterioration in parent-child interactions.

Talent Adamson Behaviour Therapist

BA (Health and Social Services) Applied Psychology, BA Hon (HSS) Psychological Counselling – (UNISA)