Define temperament. Describe the difficult child, according to Thomas and Chess. Why has the difficult pattern sparked the most research interest?
What will be an ideal response?
Temperament is early appearing, stable individual differences in reactivity and self-regulation. Reactivity refers to quickness and intensity of emotional arousal, attention, and motor activity. Self-regulation refers to strategies that modify that reactivity. The psychological traits that make up temperament are believed to form the cornerstone of the adult personality. When we describe one person as cheerful and upbeat, another as active and energetic, and still others as calm, cautious, persistent, or prone to angry outbursts, we are referring to temperament.
Researchers Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess developed a model of temperament that inspired all others that followed. Thomas and Chess identified the difficult child as irregular in daily routines, slow to accept new experiences, and tending to react negatively and intensely. The difficult pattern has sparked the most interest because it places children at high risk for adjustment problems—both anxious withdrawal and aggressive behavior in early and middle childhood.
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