Temperament

There is a great deal of variability in how young children behave. In a case example of preschool children given the opportunity to pet a goat, some will rush to be the first to pet the animal, some will wait to see results from the kids who elected to go first, and some will cling to a safe adult and refuse to participate in the activity. How children react to the world around them is determined by a complex interaction of biology and learning; however, the term temperament often refers to the biological aspect of how different children react to and interact with the world around them. While there is general agreement that a biological component exists that explains at least part of the differences ...