Explorations in
Temperament
International Perspectives on
Theory and Measurement
Edited by
Jan Strelau
University of Warsaw
Warsaw, Poland
and
Alois Angleitner
University of Bielefeld
Bielefeld, Germany
Plenum Press • London and New York
Contents
Introduction
1
Jan Strelau and Alois Angleitner
PART I. CONTEMPORARY CONCEPTUALIZATIONS
1. Temperament and the Concept of Goodness of Fit
15
Stella Chess and Alexander Thomas
The Goodness-of-Fit Concept
Diagnostic Formulation of Temperamental Categories
Examples of Goodness and Poorness of Fit
Variability in the Goodness of Fit
Sociocultural Factors
Other Theoretical Approaches and Goodness of Fit
Goodness of Fit and Similarities of Temperament
Goodness of Fit, Self-Awareness, and Self-Esteem
Generalization of the Goodness-of-Fit Model
Prevention and Treatment of Behavior Disorders
Conclusion
2. The Functional Significance of Organismic Individuality:
The Sample Case of Temperament
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Rachna Talwar, Katherine Nitz, Jacqueline V. Lerner,
and Richard M. Lerner
Features of a Developmental Contextual Perspective
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Contents
Measuring the Dimensions of Temperament and of Ethnotheories
of Temperamental Difficulty
The Dimensions of Temperament
Contextual Demands Regarding Temperament
The Pennsylvania Early Adolescent Transitions Study (PEATS)
Conclusions and Future Directions
3. The EAS Theory of Temperament
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Arnold H. Buss
Activity
Components
Measures
Sex Differences
Learning
Person and Environment
Emotionality
Components of Fear
Components of Anger
Measures
Sex Differences
Learning
Person and Environment
Positive Emotionality
Sociability
Components
Measures
Sex Differences
Learning
Person and Environment
Problem Behaviors
Shyness
Hyperactivity
Difficult Children
EAS Theory
4. Temperament: A Developmental Framework
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Mary Klevjord Rothbart
The Newborn Period
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Contents
Infancy
The Preschool Period
Effortful Control and Ego-Control and Resiliency
Similarities between Temperamental Dimensions Identified in Infancy
and Early Childhood and Those Identified in Adult Subjects
A Developmental Model for Temperament
5. Outline of a General Emotion-Based Theory of Temperament
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Albert Mehrabian
Emotion States: Core Mediating Variables of the Theory
Personality Described in Terms of Three Basic Temperament
Variables
Description and Measurement of Temperament
The Three-Dimensional Temperament Space
in Relation to Existing Personality Measures
Situations Described in Terms of Their Emotion-Eliciting Qualities . . .
Hypotheses Outlining Answers to the Contemporaneous Questions . . .
Hypotheses Outlining Answers to the Longitudinal Questions
6. Dimensions of Personality: The Biosocial Approach to Personality
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Hans J. Eysenck
A Paradigm of Personality Description
Biological Theories of Personality
Problems in Theories Testing
EEG Studies and Personality
Electrodermal Studies of Personality
Miscellaneous Measures of Personality
Biochemical Determinants of Personality
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7. The Neuropsychology of Temperament
105
Jeffrey A. Gray
Some General Background
The Analysis of Emotion
The Model: I—The Behavioral Inhibition System
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Contents
The Model: II—The Fight/Flight System
The Model: III—The Behavioral Approach System
Personality
8. Biotypes for Basic Personality Dimensions? "The Twilight Zone"
between Genotype and Social Phenotype
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129
Marvin Zuckerman
Personality Traits
Cognitive Affective and Behavioral Mechanisms
Psychophysiology
Autonomic Arousal and Arousability
Biochemistry
Catecholamines (Dopamine, Norepinephrine, and Epinephrine) ..
Benzodiazepine-GABA System
Serotonin
Testosterone
Monoamine Oxidase (MAO)
Neuropsychology
Reward and Activity
Behavioral Inhibition
Emotionality
Behavior Genetics
Personality Traits
Biological Traits
Conclusions
9. Biochemical Variables in the Study of Temperament: Purposes,
Approaches, and Selected Findings
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Petra Netter
Introduction
Approaches to the Study of Biochemical Variables
Explanation of Theories on Temperament
Theories Based on Psychological Observations in Humans
Theories Based on Biochemical Observations in Animal
Models
Theories Based on Psychopathology
Explanation of Underlying Biochemical Processes of Psychological
Functions Indicative of Differences in Temperament
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Contents
Psychomotor Functions
Cognitive Functions
Emotional Functions
Coping Processes
Explanation of Underlying Biochemical Processes of Somatic
Response Differences Related to Temperament
Drug Responses
Psychophysiological Responses
Detection of Psychochemical Relationships in the Development
of Psychosomatic Diseases Related to Temperament
Heuristic Purposes
Considerations of Validity
Conclusions
10. Temperament and the Person-Situation Debate
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Guus L. Van Heck
A Paradigm Crisis in Personality Psychology
Mischel's Attack on the Generality of Behavior
Outcomes of the Person-Situation Debate
Stability of Temperament
Transsituational Consistency of Temperament
Temperament and the Interactionist Approach to Personality
"Niche Picking": Temperament and Situation Selection
Temperament, Response Preferences, and Situation Transformation . . .
An Illustrative Study
Final Remarks
11. The Concepts of Personality and Temperament
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Willem K. B. Hofstee
The Personological Twist
The Alleged Circularity of Personological Explanation
The Alleged Invalidity of Personological Explanation
The Alleged Atheoretical Nature of Personological Explanations . . .
Temperament and Personology
Strelau on Temperament and Personality
The Role of Biological Explanations
A Judgmental Conception of Temperament
Conclusion
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xiv
Contents
PART II. DIAGNOSTIC AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES
12. What Can We Learn from the Discussion of Personality
Questionnaires for the Construction of Temperament
Inventories?
191
Alois Angleitner and Rainer Riemann
Personality and Temperament: Where Are the Differences?
How to. Find the Real Temperament Traits
Temperament and the Item Content of Temperament Scales
Steps in the Construction of a Temperament Scale
The Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Temperament Scales
Conclusions
13. Questionnaire Measurement of Infant and Child Temperament:
Current Status and Future Directions
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Elizabeth H. Slabach, Judy Morrow, and Theodore D. Wachs
Introduction
Reliability
Internal Consistency
Test-Retest Reliability
Stability of Temperament
Interrater and Interparent Agreement
Validity Issues
Weak Validity Studies
Strong Validity Studies
Summary and Conclusions
The Psychometric Adequacy of Temperament Questionnaires . . .
The Utilization of Questionnaires
14. Mother-Father Agreement in Temperament Ratings:
A Preliminary Investigation
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Roy P. Martin and Charles F. Halverson, Jr.
Method
Participants
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Contents
Instrument
Data Analysis Procedures
Results
Mean Differences in Ratings of Mothers and Fathers
Differences in Variation of Mothers' and Fathers' Ratings
Correlations between Ratings of Mothers and Fathers
Absolute Differences between Ratings of Mother and Father . . . .
Intraclass Correlations between Ratings of Mother and Father . . .
Discussion
15. Contemporary Instruments for Assessing Early Temperament
by Questionnaire and in the Laboratory
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H. H. Goldsmith and Mary Klevjord Rothbart
The Infant Behavior Questionnaire
Development of the IBQ
Household Reliability
Content of the IBQ
Intercorrelations Among Scale Scores
Theoretical Approach to Temperament
Stability
Validation of the IBQ
Advice to Potential Users
The Toddler Behavior Assessment Questionnaire
Rationale
Construction
Validity Scales
Scale Definitions and Sample Items
Reliability and Validity
Relation between IBQ and TBAQ
Applicability
Companion Instruments Developed by Rothbart
Questionnaire for Preschoolers and Early School-Age Children . .
Questionnaire for Adolescents
Questionnaire for Adults
Need for Non-Questionnaire Measures
Behavioral Assessment of Early Temperament in the Laboratory: The
Laboratory Temperament Assessment Battery
Terminology
,.
Physical Setting, Equipment, and Laboratory Routine
Carryover Effects and Sequencing of Episodes
Maternal Interview
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Contents
Summary of Research
Anticipated Use
Conclusion
16. Reactivity and Anxiety in the Laboratory and Beyond
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Paul M. Kohn
Psychometric versus Experimental Measures of Reactivity
Reactivity and Response to Pain
Reactivity, Anxiety, and Adverse Reactions to Stress
A Psychometric Detour
Predicting Adverse Reactions to Stress
Overview
17. Correlations between Psychometric Measures
and Psychophysiological as Well
as Experimental Variables in Studies
on Extraversion and Neuroticism
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287
Manfred Amelang and Ulrike Ullwer
Theoretical Outline, Methodological Criticisms, and Some
Unresolved Questions
Psychometric Studies: Pro-Eysenck Findings
Psychophysiological and Experimental Variables: A Selective
Literature Overview
Multivariate Studies
The "Dual Nature of Extraversion": Rediscovered
Neuroticism
Report of a (Nearly) Comprehensive Study
Method
Results
Discussion and Concluding Remarks
18. Differential Psychophysiology and the Diagnosis
of Temperament
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317
Jochen Fahrenberg
Introduction
317
Contents
Multivariate Activation Theory
The Search for Psychophysiological Traits
Basic Assumptions
The Psychophysiology of Neuroticism and Anxiety
Relevant Issues in Testing Psychophysiological Trait Postulates ..
Generalizability of Psychophysiological Assessments
An Extension from the Laboratory to the Field
The First Study
The Second Study
Conclusions
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PART III. ADDENDUM
19. Renaissance in Research on Temperament: Where to?
337
Jan Strelau
Introduction
The Last Three Decades in Studies on Temperament
Invation of Traits (Dimensions) and Diagnostic Tools
in Temperament Research
One versus Many Temperament Dimensions
The Many Traits and Cumulative Value of Temperament
Research
The Structure of Temperament Needs to Be Described by Traits
Representing the Same Level of Behavior Organization
The Temperamental Traits Less Diverse Than Names
Suggest
Not All So-Called Temperament Traits Pertain
to Temperament
Temperamental Traits Differ in Evidence for Heritability
Different Temperamental Traits under the Same Label
and Differences in Their Popularity
Neutral Traits versus Traits with Evaluative Loading
Uncontrolled Growth of Psychometric Methods
in Temperament Research
Final Remarks
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Index
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