Abstract
<p>Individual differences in temperament and personality traits may shed light on the presentation and development of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) across adolescence. The present study used multi-method, longitudinal data from a large sample of Mexican-origin youth (N = 674; 50% girls) to examine associations between ADHD symptoms (including combined, hyperactive-impulsive, and inattentive subtypes) and a wide range of temperament and personality traits assessed via self-, mother-, and father-reports and coded observational data. First, we found moderate one-year rank-order stabilities of combined, hyperactive-impulsive, and inattentive ADHD symptoms (r’s ranging from .27 to .51), but relatively low eight-year rank-order stability from age 10 to 17 (r = .19 for combined); eight-year stability was higher for boys than girls. Second, hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive symptoms were both negatively correlated with concurrent effortful control and conscientiousness, and positively correlated with impulsivity, negative emotionality, and neuroticism; in addition, hyperactive-impulsive symptoms were positively associated with surgency and extraversion. Third, bivariate latent growth curve models showed that the levels and slopes of effortful control (and its facets) and negative emotionality (particularly the frustration, aggression, and depressed mood facets) were significantly related to the levels and slopes of ADHD symptom trajectories. Findings from random-intercept cross-lagged panel models showed that temperament domains and ADHD symptoms had meaningful between- and within-person associations, but no significant cross-lagged associations. Associations were stronger for adolescent self-reports of temperament/personality than for mother reports. Overall, findings highlight connections between temperament and personality traits with ADHD symptoms across adolescence.</p>