Childhood Behavior in Adulthood

There is significant longitudinal evidence that behavioral characteristics that can be seen in late childhood persists into adulthood. These behavioral characteristics have also been seen to persist for large stretch of adult life as well (Caspi, Harrington, Milne, Amell, Theodore, and Moffitt, 2003). Quite contested, though of significant importance, is the notion that criminal propensity is amongst the behavioral characteristics that develop in childhood and persist to adulthood (Wright, Tibbetts, and Daigle, 2008).

The notion that people are “born bad” and will eventually develop from misbehaved children into criminal adults, is one popular position with clear policy implications. It ignors the fact that people do change, often in quite significant ways. People are not on a fixed path from deviant child to criminal adult (Wright et al., 2008). There does however seem to be a link between childhood and adult behavior. Caspi, Harrington, Milne, Amell, Theodore, and Moffitt (2003), observed 1,000 3-year-old children and reexamined most of them 23 years later. They identified five temperament groups within the children. These temperament groupings were compared with adult personality traits identified in the 23 year later follow up. There were many colorations between childhood temperament groupings and adult personality traits. For example, children in the under-controlled temperament group showed the highest levels of Negative Emotionality as adults and children in the confident group became the most disinhibited adults. Several other temperament groups show similar correlations at a small to moderate effect level. It would appear that there are meaningful connections between childhood behavioral styles and adult personality ...

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...nd continuity of traits further emphases the need for early intervention. If traits are going to be fairly stable between childhood and adulthood, we must ensure that we are helping those with negative behavioral traits early enough to be effective.

Works cited

Caspi, A., Harrington, H., Milne, B., Amell, J., Theodore, R., & Moffitt, T. (2003). Children's

behavioral styles at age 3 are linked to their adult personality traits at age 26. Journal Of Personality, 71(4), 495-513.

Smith, C. L., Calkins, S. D., Keane,S. P., Anastopoulos, A. D., Shelton, T. L. (2004). Predicting

Stability and Change in Toddler Behavior Problems: Contributions of Maternal Behavior and Child Gender. Developmental Psychology, 40 (1): 29-42.

Wright, J. P., Tibbetts, S. G., & Daigle, L. E. (2008). Criminals in the making: criminality across

the life course. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.