Temperament & Character Trait Among Parents Of Children With And Without Behaviour Problems

Abstract

Background: Parental character has a great impact on child rearing as well as behavioral problems in children (both internalizing and externalizing) were influenced by parental personality. Both temperament and character were interacting dynamically. Individual characteristics, family experience and social environment play an essential role child’s development. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the relationship between parental temperament and character trait among parents of children with and without behaviour problems. A sample of 60 parents [30 parents of children with behavioural problem and 30 parents of children without behavioural problem (30 males and 30 females)] were selected using purposive sampling method and were administered with “SocioDemographic Sheet” and “Temperament and Character Inventory”. Results: There is a significant difference between mothers and fathers in temperament trait “reward dependence” and character trait “cooperativeness” and “self-transcendence”. Character trait “selfdirectedness” was found higher in parents of children without behavioural problem than parents of children with behavioural problem. Conclusion: There was no significant relationship between parental temperaments like novelty seeking, harm avoidance, persistence, and behavioural problem of children. Similarly, there was no significant difference between parental character trait self-directedness and behaviour problems.