The Relationships between Child Temperament, Teacher-Child Relationships, and Teacher-Child Interactions

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationships between child temperament, teacher-child relationships, and teacher-child interactions in four preschool classrooms. The preliminary analyses revealed classroom differences for all variables. In all the classrooms except one, the temperament factor Reactivity had positive and high correlations with Conflict in the relationship. Task Orientation was positively correlated to the Closeness subscale in three of the classrooms. In two of the classrooms, Task Orientation was negatively correlated with the Conflict subscale. Behavior Management was the only teacher interaction behavior that was somewhat related to temperament in all of the classrooms. Although the effect of temperament on each teacher was different, the results suggest that teachers’ relationships and interactions with children are affected by child temperament; however, there might be other factors affecting the relationships, such as teacher temperament.  The results and suggestions are discussed further in the article.