TY - JOUR

T1 - Early Motor Developmental Milestones and Personality Traits in Midlife

T2 - A 50-Year Follow-Up Study

AU - Flensborg-Madsen, Trine

AU - Mortensen, Erik Lykke

AU - Dammeyer, Jesper

AU - Wimmelmann, Cathrine Lawaetz

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - Background The purpose of this study was to investigate if infants' age at attaining motor developmental milestones is associated with the big five personality traits 50 years later. Methods Mothers of 8395 infants from the Copenhagen Perinatal Cohort recorded a total of 12 motor developmental milestones during the first year of their infant's life. Information on at least one milestone was available for 1307 singletons with adult follow-up scores on the NEO-Five-Factor Inventory. The mean age at personality testing was 50.1 years. Results Slower attainment of motor milestones was associated with increased neuroticism and lower conscientiousness in midlife. All 12 motor developmental milestones explained a total of 2.4% of the variance in neuroticism, while they explained 3.2% of the variance in conscientiousness. These results remained significant after adjustment for the included family and perinatal covariates, as well as adult intelligence. Discussion The personality trait of neuroticism is a general risk factor for psychopathology and has in young adulthood been found to be associated with early motor development. However, evidence on associations of motor developmental milestones with other personality traits has been non-existent. These findings suggest that delays in early motor development may not only characterise individuals with later psychopathology, including schizophrenia, but may also be associated with personality traits such as neuroticism and conscientiousness through the life course.

AB - Background The purpose of this study was to investigate if infants' age at attaining motor developmental milestones is associated with the big five personality traits 50 years later. Methods Mothers of 8395 infants from the Copenhagen Perinatal Cohort recorded a total of 12 motor developmental milestones during the first year of their infant's life. Information on at least one milestone was available for 1307 singletons with adult follow-up scores on the NEO-Five-Factor Inventory. The mean age at personality testing was 50.1 years. Results Slower attainment of motor milestones was associated with increased neuroticism and lower conscientiousness in midlife. All 12 motor developmental milestones explained a total of 2.4% of the variance in neuroticism, while they explained 3.2% of the variance in conscientiousness. These results remained significant after adjustment for the included family and perinatal covariates, as well as adult intelligence. Discussion The personality trait of neuroticism is a general risk factor for psychopathology and has in young adulthood been found to be associated with early motor development. However, evidence on associations of motor developmental milestones with other personality traits has been non-existent. These findings suggest that delays in early motor development may not only characterise individuals with later psychopathology, including schizophrenia, but may also be associated with personality traits such as neuroticism and conscientiousness through the life course.

KW - motor developmental milestones

KW - personality traits

KW - birth cohort

KW - NEO-Five-Factor

KW - NEO 5-FACTOR INVENTORY

KW - ENVIRONMENTAL-INFLUENCES

KW - PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES

KW - NEUROTICISM

KW - TEMPERAMENT

KW - SCHIZOPHRENIA

KW - ASSOCIATIONS

KW - ADULTHOOD

KW - LANGUAGE

KW - ORIGINS

U2 - 10.3390/children10040718

DO - 10.3390/children10040718

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 37189967

VL - 10

JO - Children-Basel

JF - Children-Basel

IS - 4

M1 - 718

ER -