Accentuation rather than change? Personality development during puberty

This study examines the accentuation hypothesis which assumes that "potenti ally disruptive transitions produce personality continuity, not change" (Ca spi & Moffitt, 1991, p. 157). Puberty and its biopsychosocial events is suc h a transition involving uncertainty. In order to manage the resulting unpr edictability, adolescents resort to their most typical behaviors. Therefore personality accentuation is to be expected. The behavioral responses of 16 2 10- to 13-year old girls to the onset of menarche were examined in a long itudinal study of a representative sample of German adolescents. Depending on maturational timing and premenarcheal status, temperament, delinquency, and depressive mood scores were compared 9 to 17 months after the onset of menarche. An accentuation of individual differences could not be found in e arly maturing girls. Noticeably, in contrast to the results of Caspi and Mo ffitt (1991), our study indicates that accentuation might take place in slo w maturers. Rather than invalidating the accentuation hypothesis, the resul ts lead one to doubt whether early maturation is an indicator for uncertain ty. Culture-specific consequences of early maturational timing are discusse d. Key words: puberty, accentuation, personality development, maturational timing.