The Role of Temperament in Cooperation and Level of Anxiety in Preschool and Elementary School Children in the Dental Office

BACKGROUND Dental fear and anxiety (DFA) refers to the fear of and anxiety towards going to the dentist. It exists in a considerable proportion of children and adolescents and is a major dilemma in paediatric dental practice. However, temperament has been suggested to be a predictive factor for the child’s reaction to dental treatment especially in young ages. This study was done to assess the role of temperament in the levels of anxiety and cooperation in preschool and elementary school children in the dental office. METHODS This descriptive, cross-sectional study evaluated 70 preschools (4 - 6 years of age) and elementary school (7 - 10 years of age) children presenting to the paediatric dental clinic of TUMS School of Dentistry. The children were generally healthy and had at least one carious primary molar requiring pulp therapy or restorative treatment under local anaesthesia. The temperament trait of children was determined using the Persian version of Malhotra’s Temperament Schedule that measures the nine temperament traits identified by Thomas and Chess. Next, the cooperation and level of anxiety in children were determined during anaesthetic injection and cavity preparation using the Venham Clinical Cooperation Scale (VCCS) and Venham Clinical Anxiety Scale (VCAS). Data was analyzed using a regression model. RESULTS The temperament trait of children had a significant correlation with their parent’s education level (P = 0.038). Lower sociability scores were significantly correlated with higher level of anxiety and uncooperative behaviour of children during anaesthetic injection and cavity preparation (P < 0.05). Rhythmicity was significantly correlated with anxiety during anaesthetic injection, and higher intensity of response/energy was significantly correlated with poor cooperation of children during injection and higher anxiety during cavity preparation (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Within the limitations of this study, the results of temperament trait can predict the behaviour of children and their level of anxiety and cooperation in the dental office setting. KEY WORDS Anxiety; Cooperation; Child, Preschool; Temperament; Paediatric Dentistry.

Temperament Trait Changes in Japanese Black Cows Under Grazing and Confined Conditions

The objective of the present study was to reveal the effects of grazing on the temperament traits of cows. Nine Japanese Black cows [344 ± 32 kg body weight (BW), 7.7 ± 3.0 year of age], which had various experiences, such as tethering, handling, and grazing, were used in this experiment. Five of the nine cows were grazed for 3 months on a 1.8-ha field composed of a sown pasture with forestland. The remaining cows were fed in confinement. On days 38, 52, 72, and 86 after the start of grazing, the temperament traits observed in various situations, such as moving to the body weight scale, weighing, handling, moving to the stock for blood sampling, holding in the stock, and obtaining a blood sample, were assessed with a visual analog scale (VAS: 1–10) or score (1–5). During weighing and handling, the intensity of resistance exhibited by the grazing cows, as evaluated by head movement, walking/stepping, tail flicking, rope tension, and overall movement, was lower than that exhibited by confined cows (P &lt; 0.05). The resistance score exhibited by the grazing cows during blood sampling was also lower than that exhibited by confined cows (P &lt; 0.01). These results suggest that grazing enhances docility in cows with various experiences in different situations encountered in daily management.

Harnessing temperament to elucidate the complexities of serotonin function

This review highlights the utility of using concepts of consistent behavioural patterns (CBPs) (temperament in healthy individuals; and psychopathology of mental illness) in conjunction with situational contextuality. We also point to multiple roles of central serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) as a biomarker of CBPs. We use empirical demonstrations of the complex and trait-dependent effects of manipulating 5-HT via acute dietary tryptophan depletion (ATD) to highlight the relevance of these constructs in the neurochemical control of behaviour. Neurochemical and temperament trait interactions, for example, 5-HT and empathy, psychopathy, neuroticism, impulsivity, and hyperthymia are postulated to underlie this complexity.

Understanding children with Behavioral Inhibition

Behavioral inhibition (BI) is a temperament trait characterized by extreme fear in the face of novelty. BI has been associated with the development of mental disorders. However, there is a lack of research examining the socioemotional and behavioral characteristics of behaviorally inhibited children both in family and school settings. For a more comprehensive and in-depth overview of children’s behavior in each of these contexts, this study has collected data from both parents (mother and father – family setting) and from teachers (educational environment). The sample consisted of 109 children aged between four and six years old. Multi-informant approach was used: all fathers, mothers and teachers completed both the Preschool Behavioral Inhibition Scales, the Child Behavior Checklist for parents and teachers, and the Behavior Assessment System for Children and Adolescents. Our findings revealed that children classified as BI exhibit less socioemotional and behavioral adjustments than their uninhibited peers both in family and school contexts. Further, the shyness variable seemed to be strongly associated with behavioral inhibition, regardless of informant and context.

The Influence of Temperament on Body Temperature Response to Handling in Angus Cattle

Previous studies have indicated that cattle with more excitable temperaments exhibit an increased stress response. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between temperament traits, handling, and stress-induced hyperthermia (SIH) in beef cattle. Rectal temperatures (TREC, °C) of 60 purebred Angus cattle (30 heifers, 30 steers; 235.2 ± 5.11 kg) were recorded at 20 s intervals from 30 min prior to handling until two hours post handling. All cattle were exposed to a standardized handling procedure consisting of (i) being restrained in a weighing box for 30 s; (ii) being held within the crush for 30 s; and then (iii) being restrained in a head bail for 60 s. Cattle temperaments were evaluated via three traits: (1) agitometer score (AG); (2) crush score (CS); and (3) flight speed (FS) during the handling procedure. Agitometer scores and FS measures were used to describe an AG category (AGCAT) and an FS category (FSCAT) that were used to classify animals into three temperament categories: 1, calm; 2, intermediate; and 3, temperamental. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used to evaluate the associations between (i) AG, CS, FS, and TREC 30 min prior to entry into the weighing box (T-30) and then at 1 min intervals between time of entry into the weighing box (T0) until 10 min post-weighing (T10); and (ii) the relationship between AG, CS, and FS. The relationship between TREC and temperament traits over the 2.5 h were modeled by using a first-order autoregressive repeated measures model. Flight speed had strong to moderate associations with TREC at T-30 (r ≥ 0.37; p ≤ 0.006) and between T0 and T10 (r ≥ 0.36; p ≤ 0.01). There were moderate associations amongst TREC between T0 and T10 and CS (r ≥ 0.31; p ≤ 0.01). A weak relationship existed with CS (r = 0.16; p = 0.16). There were no associations between AG and TREC at T-30 (r ≥ −0.15; p = 0.84) or between T0 and T10 (r ≤ 0.04; p ≥ 0.4). Rectal temperature, irrespective of sex and temperament traits, was influenced by time (p < 0.0001), and maximum TREC (39.3 ± 0.04 °C) occurred between 4 and 5.7 min after entry into the weighing box. In addition, CS (p = 0.007) influenced TREC in these cattle. There were also time × temperament trait × sex interactions with the CS (p = 0.0003) and FSCAT (p = 0.043) categories; however, time × temperament trait interactions were not statistically significant. Results from this study suggest that cattle with excitable temperaments, as evaluated by FS and CS, have a greater increase in TREC. In addition, these results suggest that a relationship exists between basal TREC and FS and CS. Together, these results highlight that temperament, as assessed by FS and CS, influences both basal TREC and the peak temperature recorded following handling but does not influence the magnitude of change in TREC post handling.

Differences in personality traits in children and adult bilinguals: A pilot study in a bilingual Friulian–Italian context

We investigated changes in self-representation depending on language in Friulian–Italian bilinguals. The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and the Junior-TCI were administered respectively to 24 adults and 25 children, both in Friulian and in Italian, at a distance of two weeks from each other. Variations in TCI were detected: both adults and children scored higher in Self-Directedness (a character trait) when using Italian than Friulian. Similar findings were observed for Novelty-Seeking (a temperament trait) in children and Cooperativeness (another character trait) in adults. Results are discussed considering previous studies on bilingualism and within the frame of the Friulian sociolinguistic context.

Temperament, Bullying, and Dating Aggression: Longitudinal Associations for Adolescents in a Romantic Relationship

Adolescent bullying perpetration has previously been associated with dating benefits and costs in the short- and long-term, yet it is unclear how early temperament traits facilitate these associations. Therefore, the developmental pathways from temperament in early adolescence to bullying perpetration in middle adolescence and to dating outcomes in late adolescence were examined. Participants included 463 individuals who completed self-report measures on temperament traits at age 12, bullying perpetration at age 14, dating outcomes at age 19, and were in a romantic relationship at age 19. Findings from a path analysis revealed that an early adolescent temperament trait reflecting difficulty with self-regulation (i.e., lower inhibitory control) was associated with middle adolescent bullying perpetration and bullying perpetration was associated with late adolescent dating benefits (i.e., more dating partners) and costs (i.e., higher dating aggression perpetration). Lower inhibitory control also had significant indirect associations to the late adolescent dating outcomes through middle adolescent bullying perpetration. Findings suggest that although a temperament trait can facilitate adaptive dating outcomes through bullying, it can also come at a cost for romantic relationships. Results highlight the importance of early tailoring of bullying interventions to the self-regulatory difficulties of youth to prevent adverse long-term outcomes and to also recognize the challenges of developing interventions for behavior that can result in benefits.

Individual variation in boldness in turtles is consistent across assay conditions and behavioural measures

Temperament traits are often measured under artificial conditions, which may not necessarily predict behaviour in naturalistic contexts. A reliable behavioural assay should yield similar results as tests performed under alternative conditions, but this is not frequently evaluated in free-living animals. Eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina) exhibit individually consistent boldness behaviour in an artificial confinement assay, so we tested turtles repeatedly using the confinement assay along with a simulated predator attack assay. Turtles that were bolder during the confinement assay tended to also be bolder after the simulated predator attack, suggesting temperament is not context-specific. Bolder turtles also employed active defences (e.g., fleeing or biting) more often, demonstrating that different behavioural measures yield similar findings. Boldness in these turtles appears to be a generalized temperament trait, and similar procedures could be used in other species as well to establish the sensitivity of behavioural assessments in the field to assay conditions.

Effect of temperament on performance of primiparous dairy cows

This study was designed to analyse the effect of milking behaviour (temperament) of primiparous dairy cows on their milk and reproductive performance as well as survival to the second lactation. Milk performance, reproductive performance and culling data on 12028 Polish Holstein-Friesian primiparous dairy cows were acquired from the SYMLEK database. Using the methodology of the Polish Federation of Cattle Breeders and Dairy Farmers, the temperament of the cows was assessed as: 1 - calm, 2 - normal, 3 - excitable or aggressive. Primiparous cows from the analysed population were characterized by averagely normal temperament and optimal milking speed. Daily and lactation yield depended (P≤0.01) on the temperament of cows. Excitable (aggressive) cows had higher daily and lactation yield compared to normal and calm cows. The temperament trait was found to correlate (P≤0.01) also with functional traits such as milking speed, survival to the second lactation, and culling level. As milking speed increased, the proportion of cows with calm temperament decreased and that of excitable (aggressive) primiparous cows increased. As the temperament score increased, so did the proportion of primiparous cows sold for further breeding. Excitable (aggressive) primiparous cows had the lowest chance of survival to the second calving.