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STRUCTURE AND STABILITY OF CHILDHOOD PERSONALITY: PREDICTION OF LATER SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT
Author(s) -
Sigvardsson Sören,
Bohman Michael,
Cloninger C. Robert
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
journal of child psychology and psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.652
H-Index - 211
eISSN - 1469-7610
pISSN - 0021-9630
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7610.1987.tb00680.x
Subject(s) - psychology , personality , harm avoidance , developmental psychology , novelty , novelty seeking , reward dependence , uncorrelated , big five personality traits , social psychology , statistics , mathematics
Four hundred and thirty‐one children (233 boys, 198 girls) born in Stockholm, Sweden had detailed behavioral assessments at 11 and 13 yrs of age, including a detailed interview with their school teachers and at age 27 yrs were revaluated to identify convictions for violent or property crimes. Three dimensions of childhood personality variation were identified and rated without knowledge of later outcome. These three dimensions (novelty‐seeking, harm‐avoidance and reward‐dependence) were largely uncorrelated with one another and each was moderately predictive of later personal and social adjustment, including type of adult criminality. Factor and correlational analyses confirmed predictions that the number and structure of personality dimensions based on teacher ratings throughout childhood is similar to that observed in self‐reports by adults.