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Child Development & Early Education vocabulary · Social and Emotional Development

Temperament

Meaning in child development & early education, with examples

/ˈtemprəmənt/nounCommon term

In child development & early education, temperament means: The natural way a child tends to react to the world, such as how active, adaptable, intense or easily upset they are, which can be seen from early infancy.

In Turkish: mizaç, huy

How it is used

A research term made well known by Thomas and Chess, who described easy, difficult and slow-to-warm-up temperaments. Practitioners use it to understand individual differences, for example a shy child who needs more time to settle.

Example sentences

  1. Twins can have very different temperaments from birth.

  2. Her calm temperament helped her settle quickly.

Common collocations

  • easy temperament
  • difficult temperament
  • slow-to-warm-up
  • temperament and personality
  • attachmentThe deep emotional bond a young child forms with the main people who care for them, which gives the child a sense of safety and comfort.
  • nature and nurtureThe two main influences on development: nature means what we inherit through our genes, and nurture means experience, care and the environment.
  • settle inTo become comfortable and relaxed in a new place, such as a nursery or a new room, and get used to its people and routines.
  • self-regulationThe ability to manage your own feelings, attention and behaviour, for example calming down after being upset or waiting for a turn.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Social and Emotional Development

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