Is Temperament Associated with Academic School Readiness in Children Born Very Preterm?

Temperament, which can be assessed as early as three months, is associated with school readiness and later academic achievement in children born full term. Although children born preterm demonstrate a dysregulated temperament and are at significant risk for lower school readiness, we found no studies investigating whether early temperament is associated with school readiness in this at-risk population. Investigating whether temperament is a precursor of academic risk in preterm children can facilitate early identification and possible intervention efforts. We explored the association of negative affect, surgency, and regulation/effortful control temperament ratings collected at 3-months and 3-years corrected ages with school readiness at 3-years corrected age in children born very preterm. Participants included 297 children born very preterm (53.9% male). After controlling for key covariates, Positive Affectivity/Surgency ratings at 3-months were significantly associated with the Bracken Basic Concept Scale - School Readiness composite score, and Effortful Control ratings at 3-years were associated with Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, Third Edition (ABAS-3) Functional Pre-Academics ratings. These findings may enhance the ability to identify premature children at risk for difficulties at school entry early.