title: Whose "Storm and Stress" Is It? Parent and Child Reports of Personality Development in the Transition to Early Adolescence.
abstract: The present study investigated Big Five personality trait development in the transition to early adolescence (from the fifth to eighth grade). Personality traits were assessed in 2,761 (47% female) students over a 3-year period of time. Youths' self-reports and parent ratings were used to test for cross-informant agreement. Acquiescent responding and measurement invariance were established with latent variable modeling. Growth curve models revealed three main findings: (a) Normative mean-level changes occurred for youths' self-report data and parent ratings with modest effects in both cases. (b) Agreeableness and Openness decreased for self-reports and parent ratings, whereas data source differences were found for Conscientiousness (decreased for self-reports and remained stable for parent ratings), Extraversion (increased for self-reports and decreased for parent ratings), and Neuroticism (remained stable for self-reports and decreased for parent ratings). (c) Girls showed a more mature personality overall (self-reports and parent ratings revealed higher levels of Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness) and became more extraverted in the middle of adolescence (self-reports). Personality changes modestly during early adolescence whereby change does not occur in the direction of maturation, and substantial differences exist between parent ratings and self-reports.
authors: University of Tübingen, Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology.|University of Tübingen, LEAD Graduate School.
authors: Richard
authors: R
authors: Göllner
authors: University of Tübingen, LEAD Graduate School.|University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
authors: Brent W
authors: BW
authors: Roberts
authors: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.|University of Houston.
authors: Rodica I
authors: RI
authors: Damian
authors: Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education and Centre for International Student Assessment.
authors: Oliver
authors: O
authors: Lüdtke
authors: Fernuniversität Hagen.
authors: Kathrin
authors: K
authors: Jonkmann
authors: University of Tübingen, Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology.
authors: Ulrich
authors: U
authors: Trautwein
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D005120:Extraversion, Psychological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D000075384:Neuroticism; D010290:Parents; D010551:Personality; D010552:Personality Assessment; D010553:Personality Development; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012737:Sex Factors