Examining the relation between ratings of executive functioning and academic achievement: Findings from a cross-cultural study

The present study investigated the relation between academic performance and ratings of executive functioning in children aged 6–11 from four countries: Sweden, Spain, Iran, and China. Ratings of executive functioning were made by both parents and teachers using the Childhood Executive Functioning Inventory (CHEXI). The results showed that the Chinese sample was generally rated as having more executive deficits compared to the other samples. The finding that executive functioning deficits are exacerbated in China is most likely the result of cultural biases. Boys were generally rated as having poorer executive functioning compared to girls, except in Iran where parents, but not teachers, rated girls as having poorer executive functioning compared to boys. However, this opposite pattern of results found for Iran is not likely to reflect true gender differences in executive functioning. Despite some differences in the levels of executive functioning across countries, both the inhibition and working memory subscales of the CHEXI were related to academic achievement in all four countries, except for CHEXI parent ratings in China. Altogether, the results indicate that the CHEXI may be used as a screening measure for early academic difficulties, although cultural biases clearly have to be taken into consideration.     

Are Sensation Seeking and Emotion Processing Related to or Distinct from Cognitive Control in Children with ADHD?

This study evaluated the relationship of (a) reactive inhibition and right-lateralized emotion processing to each other and (b) to executive control of response suppression, and (c) with regard to ADHD in 134 children ages 7–12 years. Reactive inhibition was indexed by child ratings of sensation seeking on the Sensation Seeking Scales, executive control by the Stop Signal Task, emotion processing by performance on the Chimeric Faces Test, and ADHD by parent- and teacher-reported symptoms. The results were consistent with a two-process model in which executive control, conceived as a right-hemisphere lateralized function, was distinct from sensation seeking and lateralized emotion processing. Supporting this distinction, ADHD was associated with executive control, but not with sensation seeking/reactive inhibition or lateralized emotion processing. The findings suggest that ADHD cannot be understood as a global right-lateralized neuropsychological weakness, but rather that it involves only particular functions that may be right lateralized. Findings further suggest that risk for comorbid disorders in ADHD (e.g., conduct disorder or mood disorders) may increase as a function of independent factors such as temperament. Mechanisms underlying executive inhibition and emotional processing could be functionally independent yet interact to multiply psychopathological risk in some children (leading, for example, to comorbid disorders).     

Subtypes of Psychopathology in Children Referred for Neuropsychological Assessment

The validity of a Personality Inventory for Children-Revised edition (PIC-R) typology was examined in a sample of 323 children aged 6–16 years. These children had been referred to a children's mental health centre for neuropsychological assessment. In study 1, K-means cluster analysis (k = 12) was applied to the PIC clinical scales in an attempt to replicate the 12 clusters identified by Gdowski, Lachar, and Kline (1985). Partial cluster replication was achieved. Examination of the obtained clusters revealed significant overlap, suggesting that fewer clusters would represent an optimal solution. In study 2, a two-stage cluster analysis yielded a seven-cluster solution consistent with several key forms of psychopathology previously reported in the literature using specific neuropsychological populations. Identified subtypes included profiles characterized as: normal, cognitive deficit, cognitive deficit with internalized psychopathology, cognitive deficit with social impairment, cognitive deficit with hyperactivity, cognitive deficit with both internalized and externalized psychopathology, and combined internalized and externalized psychopathology without a cognitive deficit component.     

Developmental changes in decision making under risk: The role of executive functions and reasoning abilities in 8- to 19-year-old decision makers

Previous studies have shown that children and adolescents often tend toward risky decisions despite explicit knowledge about the potential negative consequences. This phenomenon has been suggested to be associated with the immaturity of brain areas involved in cognitive control functions. Particularly, “frontal lobe functions,” such as executive functions and reasoning, mature until young adulthood and are thought to be involved in age-related changes in decision making under explicit risk conditions. We investigated 112 participants, aged 8–19 years, with a frequently used task assessing decisions under risk, the Game of Dice Task (GDT). Additionally, we administered the Modified Card Sorting Test assessing executive functioning (categorization, cognitive flexibility, and strategy maintenance) as well as the Ravens Progressive Matrices assessing reasoning. The results showed that risk taking in the GDT decreased with increasing age and this effect was not moderated by reasoning but by executive functions: Particularly, young persons with weak executive functioning showed very risky decision making. Thus, the individual maturation of executive functions, associated with areas in the prefrontal cortex, seems to be an important factor in young peoples’ behavior in risky decision-making situations.     

Association between Inhibitory Control Capacity and Body Weight in Overweight and Obese Children and Adolescents: Dependence on Age and Inhibitory Control Component

It has been assumed that overweight individuals show weak inhibitory control capacity leading to a failure to resist external cues for palatable food and that this deficit underlies the recently reported empirical association between obesity and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In childhood and adolescence, empirical research on this issue is scarce. Here, the hypothesis is tested that high body weight is associated with weak inhibitory control performance and that this association is moderated by age.

The sample included 177 overweight and obese children and adolescents (BMI: M = 29.2, SD = 4.33; BMI-SDS: M = 2.45, SD = 0.43) between 8 and 15 years. Inhibitory control was assessed by a Go/No-Go task and an Interference Task. A principal component analysis yielded two components: impulsivity (fast but invalid responses) and inattention (highly variable reaction times).

While controlling for age, gender, and maternal education level, we found that more obese children/adolescents showed more inattention. As indicated by a significant interaction effect, exclusively at younger ages, high impulsivity was associated with high body weight.

The results thus confirm a link between low inhibitory control capacity and high body weight and might point to a developmental period with heightened significance of impulsivity for weight gain.     

The Attention and Executive Function Rating Inventory (ATTEX): Psychometric properties and clinical utility in diagnosing ADHD subtypes

Klenberg, L., Jämsä, S., Häyrinen, T., Lahti‐Nuuttila, P. & Korkman, M. (2010). The Attention and Executive Function Rating Inventory (ATTEX): Psychometric properties and clinical utility in diagnosing ADHD subtypes. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 439–448. This study presents a new inventory, the Attention and Executive Function Rating Inventory (ATTEX), and examines the psychometric properties and the clinical utility of ATTEX in indentifying the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder combined type (ADHD‐C) and the ADHD predominantly inattentive type (ADHD‐I) in school environments. A normative sample of Finnish 7‐ to 15‐year‐old children and adolescents (N = 701) and a clinical sample consisting of children with ADHD‐C (N = 190) and ADHD‐I (N = 25) were examined with the ATTEX and the ADHD Rating Scale‐IV. The ATTEX and its scales had good internal consistency reliability (0.67–0.98) and criterion validity (0.68–0.95). Normative data was provided for the total normative sample and for boys and girls separately. Gender differences were noted in the ATTEX scores, boys having consistently higher scores on all ATTEX scales. The effect of age was significant only for one of the ten scales, the Motor hyperactivity scale, 7‐year‐olds having more problems of hyperactivity than 14‐year‐olds. Lower parent education level and the child’s learning difficulties were related to higher ratings of EF problems in ATTEX. When different cutoff scores for boys and girls were applied, ATTEX was sensitive in identifying children with attention deficit disorders. In addition, ATTEX was accurate in differentiating children with ADHD‐I from children with ADHD‐C. In this Finnish sample, ATTEX showed solid psychometric properties and could be used as a reliable tool in the diagnostic evaluation of ADHD‐C and ADHD‐I.     

THE DYNAMICS OF THE LAW OF EFFECT: A COMPARISON OF MODELS

Dynamical models based on three steady‐state equations for the law of effect were constructed under the assumption that behavior changes in proportion to the difference between current behavior and the equilibrium implied by current reinforcer rates. A comparison of dynamical models showed that a model based on Navakatikyan's (2007) two‐component functions law‐of‐effect equations performed better than models based on Herrnstein's (1970) and Davison and Hunter's (1976) equations. Navakatikyan's model successfully described the behavioral dynamics in schedules with negative‐slope feedback functions, concurrent variable‐ratio schedules, Vaughan's (1981) melioration experiment, and experiments that arranged equal, and constant‐ratio unequal, local reinforcer rates.     

自发性自传体记忆：功能、特征及其理论解释

自发性自传体记忆是个体在日常生活中对自身经历的突发性回忆。作为一种普遍的基本记忆方式, 它具有指导功能和自我功能。与自觉性自传体记忆相比, 其特征是：提取方式为基于联想、自下而上加工的直接提取过程, 内容上更倾向于积极情绪事件且复述频率较低, 性质上更具体。相应的解释理论有情景记忆回想理论、线索-启动理论、直接提取理论及概念联想理论。未来研究应注意功能验证、研究系统化、理论整合与跨文化等问题。