Temperament and Behavior Disorders in Children

This book, the latest resulting from the authors' longitudinal study of a group of young children, is basically oriented toward impressing the reader with the importance of the "temperament" in the emotional development of the child. The sample chosen represents 42 of the original 136 children in the study. These youngsters developed some symptom or other behavioral problem and were subsequently studied in detail. Nine categories of "reactivity" were utilized to establish the basic "temperament" of each subject. These categories were activity level, rhythmicity, approach or withdrawal, adaptability, intensity of reaction, threshold of responsiveness, quality of mood, distractibility, and attention span and persistence. Each of these was rated on a three-point scale. The ratings were begun in infancy and continued throughout childhood. The investigators also studied the homes of the children, their intellectual levels, and the reports from teachers. The sample consisted of children of various ages ranging from those