Executive function mediates the association between cumulative risk and learning in Ghanaian schoolchildren.

Abstract

Research on the associations among adversity, executive function (EF), and academic outcomes in lowand middle-income countries, where developmental risk factors are more prevalent and impoverished environments are more widespread than in high income countries, is sparse. This study examines the relations among cumulative risk, EF, and learning outcomes measured 2-years later in Ghanaian third-and fourth-graders (N = 371; 49% female), shedding light on underlying mechanisms of how risk can undermine learning. A cumulative risk index was created based on a set of four child-reported risk factors: home aggression, unsafe home neighborhood, hunger, and having worked for pay. Cumulative risk and EF were negatively correlated. Learning outcomes (literacy and math test scores) were negatively correlated with earlier measures of cumulative risk and positively correlated with earlier measures of EF. EF mediated the association between cumulative risk and later learning outcomes, accounting for 65.3% of the total effect for literacy and 100% for math. This mediated pathway was robust to controls for child and household sociodemographic characteristics. The findings contribute to a small evidence base on the mediating role of EF in linking adversity and learning outcomes in a global context.

Early cumulative risk and outcomes in adolescence and adulthood: The role of executive function and behavioral regulation.

“…Similarly, Waters et al (2021) found that working memory, a specific EF skill, mediated relations between preschool parent education and first-grade math achievement. Finally, our study is in line with the one other study examining EF as a mediator between cumulative risk and learning outcomes (Suntheimer et al, 2022). In that study, results indicated that EF measured at age 9 significantly mediated the effect of cumulative risk from birth to age 9 on math achievement at age 11.…”

“…For example, studies have shown that EF during early and middle childhood mediates relations between socioeconomic factors and later academic outcomes (Deer et al, 2020; Lawson & Farah, 2017; Waters et al, 2021). Furthermore, in a recent study looking specifically at cumulative risk, results indicated that EF measured at age 9 significantly mediated the effect of cumulative risk exposure from birth to age 9 on math achievement at age 11 among Ghanaian children (Suntheimer et al, 2022). Thus, it is expected to do the same in models examining earlier cumulative risk and later educational outcomes.…”

“…In sum, previous literature suggests that the pathways for a mediating effect of EF and behavioral regulation for relations between early cumulative risk and outcomes are likely and may depend on the specific aspect of EF. For example, extant studies indicate that both EF and behavioral regulation may mediate the effects of risk on educational and socioeconomic outcomes (Deer et al, 2020; Lawson & Farah, 2017; McClelland et al, 2013; Moffitt et al, 2011; Suntheimer et al, 2022; Waters et al, 2021). However, the literature base suggests that perhaps only behavioral regulation may mediate the effect on risky behaviors and that neither EF nor behavioral regulation will mediate effects on depression (Moffitt et al, 2011).…”

Home learning environment and physical development impact children’s executive function development and literacy in rural Côte d’Ivoire

“…Here we ask how household SES relates to EF and literacy skills for children in rural Côte d'Ivoire. Indeed, the negative association between low SES and academic outcomes, including literacy, has previously been found to be mediated by the development of EF both in LMICs and HICs (Dilworth-Bart, 2012;Ferguson et al, 2013;Lawson & Farah, 2017;Nesbitt et al, 2013;Suntheimer et al, 2022). We test the hypothesis that EF mediate the association between SES and literacy.…”

Prefrontal activation in preschool children is associated with maternal adversity and child temperament: A preliminary fNIRS study of inhibitory control

“…The majority of this research has focused on links between children's exposure to adversity and their own neurodevelopmental outcomes (e.g., Chahal et al., 2022; Demir‐Lira et al., 2016; Miller et al., 2020; Sheridan et al., 2017). For example, altered prefrontal cortex (PFC) development and difficulties in executive functioning are frequently documented outcomes in children exposed to adversity (Hanson et al., 2012; Pechtel & Pizzagalli, 2011; Suntheimer et al., 2022).…”