Analysing contemporary findings within personality psychology, the lack of systematic studies about the role of preschool children’s temperament in their resilience and strength and difficulties could be determined. Therefore, this study was focused to analyse the predictive power of children’s temperament regarding their resilience, strength and difficulties. With that aim, 17 preschool teachers have rated children’s temperament (EAS temperament questionnaire), resilience (CYRM), strength and difficulties (SDQ) on 269 preschool children, from seven kindergartens in Primorje-Gorje county, Croatia. Within children’s temperament, three dimensions were explored (emotionality, activity and sociability). Resilience was operationalized as one dimension ; prosocial behaviour was defined as a strength ; and hyperactivity, emotional problems, behaviour problems and peer problems were defined as children’s difficulties. In this study, it was determined that children’s emotionality and activity negatively correlated with prosocial behaviour and resilience ; and positively correlated with children’s difficulties (hyperactivity, emotional, behaviour and peer problems). On the other side, sociability showed significant positive correlations with prosocial behaviour and resilience ; and negative correlations with all children’s difficulties. Hierarchical regression analyses showed as hypothesized, that these three temperament dimensions, especially activity and sociability, are significant predictors of children’s resilience, strength and difficulties. As it was expected, children’s temperament proved to have the significant role within understanding children’s resilience, strength and difficulties.

Psihologija