Dr. Koraly Pérez-Edgar - Temperament and Childhood Anxiety

In this episode of Parenting for the Present, we're joined by Dr. Koraly Pérez-Edgar, McCourtney Professor of Child Studies and Professor of Psychology at Penn State. Dr. Pérez-Edgar is a leading researcher on temperament and anxiety, studying how individual differences in attention shape children's emotional development.

In this conversation, Dr. Pérez-Edgar explains what temperament really is, why it's biologically based but not destiny, and how parents can support children who are shy, reactive, or slow to warm up. She offers research-backed, practical guidance on sensitive parenting, gentle exposure, and "goodness of fit," helping parents build confidence, resilience, and regulation in their children without trying to change who they are. Dr. Pérez-Edgar is a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Developmental Psychology.