Predictori temperamentali

Early Temperamental and Family Predictors of Shyness and Anxiety Michele M. Volbrecht and H. Hill Goldsmith University of Wisconsin–Madison With a sample of 242 twins (135 girls, 107 boys) studied longitudinally, behavioral inhibition (BI) and inhibitory control (IC) measured at 3 years, as well as early and concurrent family process variables, were examined as predictors of shyness and of anxiety symptoms approximately 4 years later. Structured obse rvatio nal data from laboratory and home conte xts were used in conju nction with parent and exper imen ter ratin gs. A key goal was to extend previous findings of the positive relatio nshi p betwe en early BI and anxiety development by incorporating the consideration of IC and family process variables. Using hierarchical linear modeling with restricted maximum likelihood estimation to adjust for twin dependency, early BI (b 0.37, p .01), IC (b 0.14, p .05), and concurrent lower family stress (b –0.22, p .05) predicted shyness during middle childhood. Findings were similar for parent-rated and laboratory-based shyness measures. Anxiety symptoms were predicted by BI ( b 0.14, p .05), early negative family affect (b 0.20, p .05), and family stress in middle childhood ( b 0.26, p .05). These findings clarify the relative importance of temperament and family factors in the development of both shyness and anxiety symptoms during childhood. Keywords: shyness, anxiety, childhood, longitudinal For a variety of reasons, children inhibit their behavior in certain situations. Behavioral inhibition (BI) refers to wariness in regards to novel people, object s, or situa tions (Kagan , Snidman, Kahn, & Towsley, 2007). Individuals can be inhibited toward the unfamiliar in this classic sense, but they can also be inhibited as a result of social-evaluative concerns based on the fear of being rejected or neglected by others (Asendorpf, Denissen, & van Aken, 2008). Whereas inhibition refers to both social and nonsocial situations, shyness is a narrower construct that is described as wariness when confronted with novel social situations and/or self-conscious behavior in perceived social-evaluative settings (Rubin, Coplan, & Bowker, 2009). Therefore, as with inhibition, shyness is elicited by both novel and familiar social situations. Children’s lack of social inter actio n can result from either active isolation, a proce ss in which peers reject and/or exclude children from social situations, or social withdrawal (the aspect focused on in this study) whereby the child himself or herself elects not to engage in social interac- tion (Rubin et al., 2009). Although the experience of shyness in moderation is considered typical, excessive childhood inhibition can foreshadow adjustment problems. Both early inhibit ion more broadly and shyness spec ifica lly have been empirically coupled with the development of anxiety (Rapee, Kennedy, Ingram, Edwards, & Sweeney, 2005; Schwartz, Snidman, & Kagan, 1999; Van Ameringen, Mancini, & Oakman, 1998 ). In moderation, anxiet y is a nat ura l par t of the human experience; in the extreme, it can impair functioning. A proposed, normative developmental progression of types of anxiety includes separation anxiety (usual onset, 6–22 months); stranger anxiety (6–24 months); fear of unfamiliar peers (20–29 months); anxieties related to animals, darkness, and imaginary creatures (2–6 years); school-related anxiety (3–6 years); and fear of injury and harm (8–16 years) (Scarr & Salapatek, 1970). Evolutionarily, the development of fears promotes withdrawal of the individual from pred- ators and other harmful situations (Bowlb y, 1973) and provide s a signal of danger to conspecifics. Yet, common childhood fears can some times manife st as anxiety disorders, which are among the most prevalent psychiatric illnesses in children, adolescents, and adults (Pennington, 2002). Although shyness and clinical symptoms of anxiety are related, they are by no means synonymous. Although extremely shy children are more likely to experience anxiety symptoms, many shy children do not have anxiety issues. Furthermore, many children who suffer from clinical symptoms of anxiety only exhibit mod- erate levels of shyness. Therefore, although shyness and anxiety are positively related, they are not components of a single under- lying construct (Rapee, 2010). In the current study, we examine both shyness and clinical symptoms of anxiety as outcome variables. Gender Differences in Shyness and Anxiety The literatur e on gende r differenc es in aspe cts of inhibi tion throughout development is somewhat mixed. Some studies find little evidenc e to suppor t signif ican t gende r diffe rence s in inhibition, shyness, social withdrawal (Rubin et al., 2009), and anxiety (Cohen et al., 1993; Schniering, Hudson, & Rapee, 2000) throughout childh ood and adolesce nce. However, other rese arch shows that gender differences gradually become apparent across childhood, with girls appearing more fearful and anxious than boys Michele M. Volbrecht, Department of Educational Psychology, Univer- sity of Wisconsin–Madison; H. Hill Goldsmith, Department of Psychol- ogy, University of Wisconsin–Madison. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Michele M. Volbre cht, Department of Educati onal Psycholog y, Univers ity of Wisco nsin– Madi son, 1025 West John son Street , Madis on, WI 5370 6. E-mail: [email protected] Developmental Psychology © 2010 American Psychological Association 2010, Vol. 46, No. 5, 1192–1205 0012-1649/10/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0020616 1192

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Predictori temperamentali