Research Findings: Exuberant temperament, characterized by high approach and positive affect, is linked to socioemotional outcomes including risk of externalizing symptoms across development. Externalizing problems interfere with children's school readiness and lead to disruptive behavior in the classroom. While some moderating factors help…

Research Findings: A total of 81 children participated in a longitudinal investigation of inhibitory control (IC) from 2 to 4 years of age. Child IC was measured via maternal report and laboratory measures under conditions of conflict and delay. Performance on delay IC tasks at 3 years was related to performance on these same tasks at 2 and…

Research Findings: This study examined how child negative emotionality interacted with mothers' self-reported parenting in predicting different aspects of social functioning among very young Chinese children. A total of 109 Chinese nursery children in Hong Kong participated with their parents. Maternal supportive and aversive parenting practices…

Shy children are less likely to interact with peers and teachers, ask questions, and participate in classroom activities. Children low in attention and inhibitory control also perform worse academically. Although research indicates children's relationships with teachers may be protective for children at risk for academic difficulties, less is…

Research Findings: This study is an examination of (a) links between preschool children's temperament (effortful control, shyness, and anger) and teacher-child conflict and (b) classroom instructional and emotional support as moderators of associations between temperament and teacher-child conflict. Children (N = 104) were enrolled in 23…

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine whether child temperament differentially predicted academic school readiness depending on the quality of classroom interactions for 179 Head Start preschoolers. Teachers rated children's temperament as overcontrolled, resilient, or undercontrolled in the fall and reported on children's…

Research Findings: This study examined whether children's executive functions before kindergarten would predict variance in executive functions after kindergarten. We obtained behavioral (working memory task performance), parent-reported (temperament-based inhibitory control), and psychophysiological (working memory-related changes in heart rate…

Research Findings: This paper examines the extent to which children's effortful control and early family experiences predict difficulty in kindergarten adjustment. One hundred and eighty-two children from 31 kindergarten classrooms in rural elementary schools in the Southeast participated. Teachers reported on children's difficulty with…

A study involving two questionnaires given to mothers of four-, six-, and eight-year olds investigated whether a correlation exists between differences in temperaments of children and their attachment to objects. Results supported the hypothesis and provided evidence that children with non-social attachment are as well adjusted as children without…

Assessed the relationship between sleep problems and temperament in 63 toddlers who had night-waking problems and 35 nonreferred toddlers. On the Toddler Temperament Questionnaire, night wakers showed lower sensory thresholds and less adaptivity than did controls. On the Parental Stress Index, night wakers were rated as more distractible, less…

Examined two hypotheses regarding activity level: (1) early appearing stability; and (2) inversion of intensity. Measured behavioral intensity or activity level six times between the neonatal period and first grade. Results indicated that parent ratings supported activity level stability. Observations revealed that intense neonatal activity…

Surveyed mothers and children at four constructivist and ten Montessori preschool classrooms. Found a near significant trend suggesting that temperamentally active boys were more likely to be perceived as behavior problems in Montessori settings, which are characterized by working quietly for long periods of time. No similar trends were revealed…