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Thomas & Chess on Behavioral Individuality

Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess discuss temperament qualities in children.

Welcome to Temperament.com

B-DI is a project dedicated to promoting the scientific work and professional applications in the area of temperament. Temperament is about behavioral individuality in infants, toddlers, children and adults. Just as babies are born with their own combination of physical characteristics such as hair and eye color, skin tone, and physique, behavioral scientists know that each one has patterns of behavioral style, or temperament, that are also part of their uniqueness.

The B-DI website is intended as a clearinghouse for research evidence and professional practice associated with temperamental characteristics, to be used by caregivers, students, clinicians and others who have an interest in behavioral individuality.

Parenting & Temperament

Parents
Why are children so different? Because each has his or her own temperament! This accounts for why infants and children need to be raised in different ways. Parenting methods and techniques must be compatible with their personalities.

Temperament for Students

Students
Individual differences in temperament are studied in numerous fields, including child psychology, personality, nursing, behavioral genetics, education, psychiatry, social work and many other fields where there is interest in the biological underpinnings of behavior.

Research in Temperament

Researchers
Research in temperament has blossomed in the last 25 years through the efforts of literally hundreds of scientists in many disciplines.

Clinical Uses of Temperament

Clinicians
Temperamental characteristics are important facets of child behavior and can be assessed and used for parent education and guidance by members of many professional groups.