Temperament and social development in childhood

Abstract

This chapter presents a brief review of the literature on the role of temperament in the social development of children. It first defines what temperament is by outlining the basic dimensions of temperament with an emphasis on examining its regulatory aspect, how temperament is measured, and theoretical perspectives on the ways through which temperament is related to social development. Social competence involves the successful initiation and maintenance of social interactions that reflect efficiency in social interaction. Among temperamental dimensions involving negative emotionality, surgency/extraversion (or activity level-positive affect), and regulation (inhibitory control, effortful control), their components have been widely examined as risk and protective factors for negative social interactions, peer behavior problems, and socially incompetent behaviors. Finally, the chapter also presents information about temperament-based intervention programs that aim to foster social development in children.