Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style
Childhood temperament is an early characteristic shaping later life adjustment. However, little is currently known about the stability of early temperament and its susceptibility to the environment in children born very preterm (VPT; <33 weeks’ gestation). Here, we investigated infant-to-childhoo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Children |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/4/508 |
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| author | Irene Lovato Lucy D. Vanes Chiara Sacchi Alessandra Simonelli Laila Hadaya Dana Kanel Shona Falconer Serena Counsell Maggie Redshaw Nigel Kennea Anthony David Edwards Chiara Nosarti |
| author_facet | Irene Lovato Lucy D. Vanes Chiara Sacchi Alessandra Simonelli Laila Hadaya Dana Kanel Shona Falconer Serena Counsell Maggie Redshaw Nigel Kennea Anthony David Edwards Chiara Nosarti |
| author_sort | Irene Lovato |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Childhood temperament is an early characteristic shaping later life adjustment. However, little is currently known about the stability of early temperament and its susceptibility to the environment in children born very preterm (VPT; <33 weeks’ gestation). Here, we investigated infant-to-childhood temperamental trajectories, and their interaction with parental practices, in VPT children. Maternal reports of infant temperament were collected in 190 infants (mean age: 11.27 months; range 9–18 months) enrolled in the longitudinal Evaluation of Preterm Imaging (ePrime; Eudra: CT 2009-011602-42) study, using the ePrime questionnaire on infant temperament. At 4–7 years of age, further assessments of child temperament (Children’s Behavior Questionnaire—Very Short Form) and parenting style (Arnold’s Parenting Scale) were conducted. Results showed that more difficult temperament in infancy was associated with increased Negative Affectivity in childhood, regardless of parenting practices. This lends support to the stability of early temperamental traits reflecting negative emotionality. In contrast, a lax parenting style moderated the relationship between easy infant temperament and Negative Affectivity at 4–7 years, such that an easier infant temperament was increasingly associated with higher childhood Negative Affectivity scores as parental laxness increased. These results highlight a potential vulnerability of VPT infants considered by their mothers to be easy to handle, as they may be more susceptible to the effects of suboptimal parenting in childhood. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:59:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1d52589e7b314ca4bd47678622ca5b2d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:59:53Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Children |
| spelling | doaj.art-1d52589e7b314ca4bd47678622ca5b2d2023-12-01T01:18:39ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672022-04-019450810.3390/children9040508Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting StyleIrene Lovato0Lucy D. Vanes1Chiara Sacchi2Alessandra Simonelli3Laila Hadaya4Dana Kanel5Shona Falconer6Serena Counsell7Maggie Redshaw8Nigel Kennea9Anthony David Edwards10Chiara Nosarti11Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKDepartment of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, 35151 Padova, ItalyDepartment of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padova, 35151 Padova, ItalyCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKNational Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7LF, UKNeonatal Unit, St George’s Hospital, London SW17 0QT, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKCentre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 7EH, UKChildhood temperament is an early characteristic shaping later life adjustment. However, little is currently known about the stability of early temperament and its susceptibility to the environment in children born very preterm (VPT; <33 weeks’ gestation). Here, we investigated infant-to-childhood temperamental trajectories, and their interaction with parental practices, in VPT children. Maternal reports of infant temperament were collected in 190 infants (mean age: 11.27 months; range 9–18 months) enrolled in the longitudinal Evaluation of Preterm Imaging (ePrime; Eudra: CT 2009-011602-42) study, using the ePrime questionnaire on infant temperament. At 4–7 years of age, further assessments of child temperament (Children’s Behavior Questionnaire—Very Short Form) and parenting style (Arnold’s Parenting Scale) were conducted. Results showed that more difficult temperament in infancy was associated with increased Negative Affectivity in childhood, regardless of parenting practices. This lends support to the stability of early temperamental traits reflecting negative emotionality. In contrast, a lax parenting style moderated the relationship between easy infant temperament and Negative Affectivity at 4–7 years, such that an easier infant temperament was increasingly associated with higher childhood Negative Affectivity scores as parental laxness increased. These results highlight a potential vulnerability of VPT infants considered by their mothers to be easy to handle, as they may be more susceptible to the effects of suboptimal parenting in childhood.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/4/508very preterm birthtemperamentdysfunctional parenting |
| spellingShingle | Irene Lovato Lucy D. Vanes Chiara Sacchi Alessandra Simonelli Laila Hadaya Dana Kanel Shona Falconer Serena Counsell Maggie Redshaw Nigel Kennea Anthony David Edwards Chiara Nosarti Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style Children very preterm birth temperament dysfunctional parenting |
| title | Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style |
| title_full | Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style |
| title_fullStr | Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style |
| title_full_unstemmed | Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style |
| title_short | Early Childhood Temperamental Trajectories following Very Preterm Birth and Their Association with Parenting Style |
| title_sort | early childhood temperamental trajectories following very preterm birth and their association with parenting style |
| topic | very preterm birth temperament dysfunctional parenting |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/4/508 |
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