Your personality is made up of many details. It is influenced by your genes, your friends, the school you go to, and many other factors. All areas of life play a role in shaping the person you will become. But when exactly do behavioral tendencies begin to take shape? For example, if you grew up to be a humble person, does that mean you were a humble child?
Scientists' opinion
Scientists believe that character is laid in childhood. Research suggests there is a link between our behavior at the age of several months and the way we become later. Of course, one cannot say that character is something predetermined, but its basis can still be traced from the very first days of man. Psychologists who study children usually describe temperament rather than character. One of the first studies in this area was carried out in the middle of the twentieth century. American researchers, the spouses Stella Chess and Alexander Thomas, studied 133 children, monitoring their behavior from birth to the age of thirty, while talking with their parents. Based on research, scientists have suggested that there are nine main traits of an infant's temperament, including activity level, mood and distraction. Three groups were identified - children with whom it is easy to get along, children with whom it is difficult, and children with a slow reaction.
Surprising research result
Do you think these child categories have continued to influence the character of people in adulthood? An American study found some evidence that children who are described as calm or violent retain these traits into adulthood. However, there was no detailed comparison of temperament in infancy and adult character. The thing is that for a long time psychologists were divided due to the age category - those who studied children practically did not cooperate with those who worked with adults. The situation began to change only in recent decades, so for now we can only say that the infant temperament, although it does not fully show the character of an adult, nevertheless reflects some features.
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Changes in grades
It is worth noting that more detailed studies were hampered by changes in assessments of infant temperament. Before there were nine, but now there are three broad areas of definition, and each psychological laboratory has its own terms to describe them. So, there is the concept of conscious control, which takes into account the baby's ability to focus, for example, to be distracted when tempted to look at a toy. There is a definition of negative sensitivity, which describes emotions like fear and irritation, as well as the concept of extraversion, which indicates the level of communication skills.
Russian studies
More recently, a Russian study on personality and individual differences has been published. As part of the study, forty-five families were monitored, where parents assessed the temperament of infants on a certain scale, using assessments at different periods - several months and several years later. The basis of the assessments were such traits of an adult as sociability and hysteria. As a result, the researchers compared the scores and found that infants who scored higher in childhood for communication were more emotionally stable at an older age. Those who were more in control of themselves in infancy were more conscientious at the age of several years. In short, if your child is attentive - most likely, he will be neat enough when he grows up!