Final answer:
Highly reactive children's temperaments are linked with increased levels of introversion and neuroticism in adulthood. Reactive temperament implies heightened sensitivity to environmental stimuli, which can lead to more solitary behaviors and experience of negative emotions as adults.
Step-by-step explanation:
Children with highly reactive temperaments often display higher levels of introversion and neuroticism in adulthood. Reactivity, in the context of temperament, refers to how an individual responds to new or challenging environmental stimuli. Highly reactive children tend to respond with heightened sensitivity and may experience anxiety when faced with new situations. As adults, this can translate into a tendency towards introversion, as they may prefer familiar settings and limited social interactions to manage their sensitivity. Similarly, their higher reactivity may also manifest as neuroticism, characterized by frequent experiencing of negative emotions such as anxiety and irritability.
Neuroticism is associated with emotional instability and traits such as being angry, impulsive, and hostile. Introversion, on the other hand, describes individuals with a predilection towards solitary behaviors and limited social interactions. This propensity for introversion and neuroticism aligns with the difficulties highly reactive children face in adapting and regulating their emotions, which is a predictive factor for these adult characteristics. Therefore, the relationship between reactive childhood temperaments and adulthood traits provides insight into the continuity between early temperament and adult personality.