The Relationship between the Biogenetic Temperament and Character and Psychopathology in Adolescents

Abstract

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between patterns of temperament and character and self-reported psychopathology in adolescents from the community. Sampling and Methods: The Junior Temperament and Character Inventory (JTCI) and Youth Self-Report (YSR) instruments were administered to 623 Korean middle school students (boys/girls = 331/292; age = 13.3 ± 0.9 years old). Multiple linear regression analyses were used to evaluate the relationship between temperament and character based on Cloninger’s biogenetic theory of personality and youth psychopathology of internalizing and externalizing problems. Results: Internalizing problems of the YSR (withdrawn, somatic complaint and anxious/depressed scales) were significantly related to high Harm Avoidance and low Reward Dependence (JTCI temperament) and low Self-Directedness and high Self-Transcendence (JTCI character). Externalizing problems of the YSR (delinquency and aggression) were significantly associated with high Novelty Seeking and high Harm Avoidance (JTCI temperament) and low Self-Directedness, low Cooperativeness and high Self-Transcendence (JTCI character).Conclusions: Findings of the current study suggest that specific patterns of temperament and character potentially influence adolescents’ psychopathology in the community.

Psychometric properties of a French version of the junior temperament and character inventory

“…Harm avoidance was positively correlated with internalized problems. This is consistent with the results of previous reports [7,12,24,26,28,38]. HA and NS were the only dimensions positively correlated with CBCL subscores.…”

“…Therefore, further investigations of the biopsychosocial model of personality, with assessments specifically validated in the pediatric population were necessary. Moreover, because of evidence showing the TCI had discriminative power for psychopathological conditions and that some dimensions may differentiate broad categories of disorders, [11,12,42] correlations between the dimensions of JTCI and clinical symptoms of psychopathology needed further investigation [21,28,30,40,43].…”

Sensation seeking as risk factor for suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in adolescence

“…The association with the Sensation Seeking subscale of the UPPS (which includes a shortened adaptation of two of the four subscales of Zuckerman’s SSS) was negligible (d'Acremont and Van der Linden, 2007). More broadly, novelty seeking has been consistently associated with the externalizing dimensions and not with the internalizing dimensions of Achenbach’s Scales, including the anxious/depressed subscale (Asch et al, 2009, Copeland et al, 2004, Kim et al, 2006, Kuo et al, 2004). The replicated finding that high levels of novelty seeking in adolescence are associated with both externalizing disorders and suicide risk has led investigators to speculate that adolescents who attempt suicide “may have a mixed affective–behavioural psychopathology… [and] may occupy a midposition between depressive adolescents and those suffering from conduct disorder pathology with regard to character dimensions” (Csorba et al, 2010).…”

Temperament and character traits in female adolescents with nonsuicidal self-injury disorder with and without comorbid borderline personality disorder

“…High self-transcendence is linked to NSSI in adolescents [20] and to BPD in adults [14]. Low reward dependence is linked to internalizing symptoms like depression and anxiety [23], but no association has been found between reward dependence and NSSI [20], nor between reward dependence and self-harm behavior [21, 22]. Kaess et al [18] found lower reward dependence in adolescents with BPD than in clinical and healthy controls.…”