Temperamental Origins of Child and Adolescent Behavior Problems: From Age Three to Age Fifteen

976 New Zealand children participated in a longitudinal study from ages 3 to 15 to examine the relations between early temperament and later behavior problems. Factor analyses revealed three temperament dimensions at each age: Lack of control, approach, and sluggishness. Lack of control was more strongly associated with later externalizing behavior problems than with internalizing problems; approach was associated with fewer internalizing problems among boys; and sluggishness was weakly associated with both anxiety and inattention, especially among girls.