Five types of personality continuity in childhood and adolescence.

TLDR

The study investigates five types of personality continuity (structural, mean‑level, individual‑level, differential, and ipsative) in children and adolescents using representative and twin/sibling samples. Parents rated their children on the Hierarchical Personality Inventory for Children at two time points separated by 36 months. The results show structural continuity and largely differential stability, with many children exhibiting stable ipsative trait profiles and only minor mean‑level changes, largely attributable to genetic and nonshared environmental influences.

Abstract

This study examines 5 types of personality continuity--structural, mean-level, individual-level, differential, and ipsative--in a representative population (N=498) and a twin and sibling sample (N=548) of children and adolescents. Parents described their children on 2 successive occasions with a 36-month interval using the Hierarchical Personality Inventory for Children (I. Mervielde & F. De Fruyt, 1999). There was evidence for structural continuity in the 2 samples, and personality was shown to be largely differentially stable. A large percentage had a stable trait profile indicative of ipsative stability, and mean-level personality changes were generally small in magnitude. Continuity findings were explained mainly by genetic and nonshared environmental factors.