ABSTRACT
It is not uncommon for individuals to think of other people they know well or have recently met as being nasty or nice, conventional or open-minded, careful or sloppy, timid or adventurous. In point of fact, individual differences in personality manifest themselves in a wide range of behaviors and behavioral domains. These include, among other things, social relationships, including the parentchild relationship. Yet when it comes to thinking about mothers and fathers and the manner in which they parent, it seems that it is the exception rather than the rule to consider their personalities. Developmentalists seem more inclined, at least since the ecological revolution (Bronfenbrenner, 1979), to think in terms of parents’ contexts-whether they are rich or poor, well or poorly educated, lacking or rich in social support, participating in satisfying work or experiencing unemployment. Perhaps this is becausemany believe that personalities are givens; they are not very subject to change. As a result, scholars, in particular those concerned with improving the lives of children and families, often focus on those aspects of children’s experiences that they presume can be modified so as to promote healthy psychological and behavioral development.
