Bateria de avaliação do temperamento infantil – forma revista

Numerous studies suggest that temperament may be considered a particularly useful variable in the understanding of interactions between children and their social environment. In this context the assessment of temperament has progressively been highlighted as an important component of the psychological assessment of children. In this paper we present the questionnaire Temperament Assessment Battery for Children – Revised (TABC-R, Martin & Bridger, 1999) concerning its composition, theoretical founding, administration and scoring procedures, and interpretation of results. The questionnaire is applicable to children aged 2 to 7 years and has both a parents’ and a teachers’ version. Results of studies with the TABC-R in Portugal are presented (N=138), with a special emphasis on reliability and validity studies. In general, results point out to good psychometric characteristics, which are encouraging regarding the potential use of the questionnaire in Portugal, where no alternative instruments exist for assessing temperament in this age group. Finally, the TABC-R is revised concerning its main potentialities and limitations, and some clues for future studies are pointed out.