1. Olivia E. Atherton University of California, davis
THE CO-DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALITY AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS FROM LATE CHILDHOOD THROUGH ADOLESCENCE
Olivia E. Atherton
University of California, davis
UCPC – may 14th, 2016
Riverside, cA

2. BACKGROUND Personality predicts a wide range of real-world outcomes
Drug use, delinquency, risky sexual behavior
Relatively little is known about how personality and behavioral problems co- develop over time
Reflection of broader life circumstances
Personality matters when combined with environmental factors
Reciprocal, transactional processes: self-selection and social causation
Personality works through other risk factors

3. CALIFORNIA FAMILIES PROJECT (Robins & Conger)
N = 674 Mexican-origin youth and their parents
Assessed annually from age 10 to 20; 90% retention rate
Understand risk for and resilience to drug use and other adolescent outcomes
Self, parent, & teacher reports; psychiatric interviews; school records; neighborhood data; fMRI
Measures
Early Adolescent Temperament Questionnaire: Composite of mother-reports of the child and child self- reports 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
AGE

4. MULTIPLE LEVELS OF RISK
Poverty
Family
Development of low self-control predicts earlier drug use initiation above and beyond:
Gender, SES, generational status
Parental monitoring
Neighborhood poverty, ethnic enclave
Familism
Self-Control
Drug Use
Culture
Neighborhood
Atherton et al. (2015), JRA

5. PERSON-ENVIRONMENT TRANSACTIONS
Self-Control
Conduct Problems
Low self-control influences development of conduct problems
Influence on conduct problems exacerbated for youth who are left at home alone
Home Alone
Atherton et al. (2016), JofA

6. Relational Aggression
RECIPROCAL PROCESSES
Low self-control predicts increases in bullying, but bullying does not predict change in self-control
Bullying predicts increases in negative emotionality & surgency
And, victims of bullying decrease in self-control
Self-Control
Relational Aggression
Atherton et al. (2016), JRP

7. MECHANISM OF INFLUENCE
Low self-control increases risk for initiating drug use by 42%
In part, via other risk factors such as intentions to use drugs, deviant peer groups, and access to drugs
Self-Control
Drug Use
Atherton et al. (2015), JRA

8. SUMMARY
Influence of personality is not just a reflection of broader life circumstances
Environmental factors exacerbate/diminish the effects of personality on behavioral problems
Both self-selection and socialization processes are at play
Mechanisms explain, in part, why personality and behavioral problems co-develop

9. FUTURE DIRECTIONS Examine other behavioral problems
School failure/misconduct
Psychiatric disorders
Explore other mediators and moderators
Parenting
Cultural values
Educational aspirations
Extend analyses into young adulthood

10. THANK YOU… QUESTIONS? To you all for listening
To my advisor: Rick Robins
To my collaborators: Emilio Ferrer, Rand Conger, Tom Schofield, and Jennifer Tackett
QUESTIONS?