Distinct Constellations of Common Risk Factors Differentially Relate to Executive-Function Ability in Children.

Executive functioning (EF) has been shown to relate to academic achievement and well-being. Independent bodies of work have aimed to understand what environmental or personal attributes influence EF ability. However, most research has not considered how constellations of risk factors create distinct patterns of influence on EF ability. The current study tested a sample of children aged 9 to 10 years from the United States (N = 10,323, 48.06% female, Mage = 9.9 years, age range = 8.9-11.08 years) using a latent profile analysis (LPA) to detect subgroups that varied in their combinations of various risk factors. Six distinct groups of risk factors for children emerged, which in turn related to different average EF abilities. We found that family socioeconomic measures related to a subgroup having above- or below-average EF ability, but we also found an effect on EF across different risk factors. These results inform our understanding of individual variations in EF ability and highlight the idea that EF interventions should consider risk holistically.

Bidirectional longitudinal relations between executive function and social function across adolescence.

Executive function (EF) and social function are both critical skills that continue to develop through adolescence and are strongly predictive of many important life outcomes. Longstanding empirical and theoretical work has suggested that EF shapes social function. However, there is little empirical work on this topic in adolescence, despite both EF and social function continuing to mature into early adulthood (e.g., Bauer et al., 2017). Further, adolescence might be a phase of life where social interactions can shape EF. We tested the longitudinal relation between EF and social function across adolescence utilizing a sample of 99 individuals (8-19 years) from the greater Austin area tested annually for 3 consecutive years. Although EF showed significant improvement in that span, the social function was largely consistent over age. Cross-lagged panel models revealed a bidirectional relation, such that Year 1 EF predicted social function in Year 2, and social function at Years 1 and 2 predicted EF in Year 3. When examining different components of social function, social motivation in earlier adolescence seemed to most consistently predict future EF outcomes, relative to other social functions. Our findings advance the field's theoretical understanding of how these two critical skills might develop alongside one another over adolescent development with particular emphasis on the role of social motivation on EF maturation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Interpersonal Family Dynamics Relate to Hippocampal CA Subfield Structure.

Social environments that are extremely enriched or adverse can influence hippocampal volume. Though most individuals experience social environments that fall somewhere in between these extremes, substantially less is known about the influence of normative variation in social environments on hippocampal structure. Here, we examined whether hippocampal volume tracks normative variation in interpersonal family dynamics in 7- to 12-year-olds and adults recruited from the general population. We focused on interpersonal family dynamics as a prominent feature of one's social world. Given evidence that CA1 and CA2 play a key role in tracking social information, we related individual hippocampal subfield volumes to interpersonal family dynamics. More positive perceptions of interpersonal family dynamics were associated with greater CA1 and CA2/3 volume regardless of age and controlling for socioeconomic status. These data suggest that CA subfields are sensitive to normative variation in social environments and identify interpersonal family dynamics as an impactful environmental feature.