The Role of Temperament in Psychosocial Adaptation in Early Adolescents: A Test of a “Goodness of Fit” Model

Abstract

Summary This study assessed the role of temperament in adolescents' adaptation to school social and academic contexts, and whether temperament when matched with contextual demands provides better adaptation than when not matched. Temperamental attributes of 48 male and 51 female junior high school students and both actual and perceived demands of the two school contexts were assessed. As predicted, Ss whose attributes fit best (were least discrepant) with the demands of the two contexts were more likely to have better scores on teacher- peer-, and self-rated measures of adaptation than Ss whose attributes fit less well. Fit scores for the perceived contexts were better predictors than were fit scores for the actual contexts. Methodological issues are discussed, and future tests of the present “goodness of fit” model of person-context relations are suggested.