Childhood Roots of Adulthood Hostility: Family Factors as Predictors of Cognitive and Affective Hostility

Childhood predictors of adulthood hostility was examined in a population-based sample of 1,004 children and their parents. Parents' Type A behavior, their life satisfaction, family's socioeconomic level, and maternal reports of children's Type A behavior were obtained for 6-, 9-, and 12-year-old participants. Hostility was self-evaluated by these participants 15 years later. Results revealed that childhood environment in terms of parental Type A behavior and life dissatisfaction as well as children's own Type A behavior predicted their adulthood hostility. The findings identified childhood environments that either promoted or protected against hostility. Results underline the need to consider the conjoint effects of various factors because the same characteristics play different roles in different contexts.