William Bacon Carey, former clinical professor of pediatrics at CHOP who taught at the hospital and at Penn for 58 years, died July 26 of congestive heart failure at Cathedral Village in Roxborough, where he had lived since 2012. He was 93.

Dr. Carey was born in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia. He graduated from Milton Academy, earned a bachelor’s degree in American studies from Yale University, and earned a medical degree from Harvard in 1954. From 1957 to 1959, he served as a captain in the Army Medical Corps in Arizona.

He interned at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and in 1959 was hired as an assistant instructor in pediatrics at CHOP. He was appointed to the clinical faculty track in 1979 as a clinical assistant professor. Over the years, he continued to be promoted, becoming a clinical professor of pediatrics. He was also on the pediatric staff at Riddle Memorial Hospital in Media, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Carey conducted research into the temperamental differences in children as they developed, with a focus on the concept that children’s behaviors spring from the interplay of their inborn qualities and abilities with their specific environments. With the help of psychologists, Dr. Carey created the first set of five clinical questionnaires in which parents described the traits of their children at various stages between one month and 12 years of age.

These questionnaires advanced the field of study by giving scientists a tool to measure and group the behaviors. He counseled parents to carefully study their children’s concerns and reactions to situations within their environment when the youngsters acted out. He emphasized the importance of reducing the stressful interactions and teaching kids coping skills.

Dr. Carey was the author of more than 130 research papers, reviews, commentaries, editorials, and book chapters. He wrote or co-authored nine books, including one for parents,  Understanding Your Child’s Temperament. He received the American Academy of Pediatrics’ 1991 Aldrich Award in Child Development and its 1992 Practitioner Research Award. In 1983, he was elected to the Institute of Medicine, now the National Academy of Medicine. He also held various editorial positions throughout his career, including with the International Journal of Behavior and Development, the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, Clinical Pediatrics, and Pediatrics in Review.

Dr. Carey is survived by daughters, Elizabeth, Katharine, and Laura; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Plans for a memorial service are pending due to the pandemic.

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