Cognition and the development of temperament from late childhood to early adolescence

Abstract

Temperament is related to cognition, but it is unclear whether reciprocal associations exist with early developmental trajectories. Children from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (N = 8,677) were assessed over four waves on verbal ability at ages 8/9, nonverbal ability at ages 8/9 and 10/11, and parent-rated temperament every two years from ages 8/9 to 14/15. Latent difference score analyses indicated correlated changes between ages 8/9 and 10/11.Increasednonverbal ability over the first two years wasassociated with declinedreactivity and increasedpersistence. Latent growth curve models further indicated that nonverbal and verbalability at baseline were associated with declined reactivity and increasedpersistence over the six years. These findings suggest bidirectional associations between childhood cognitive ability and temperament development.