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Mothers' and fathers' executive function both predict emergent executive function in toddlerhood.
Andrew Ribner1, Rory T Devine2, Clancy Blair3,4
1Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Developmental Science
|March 31, 2022
Summary
Both mothers' and fathers' executive function (EF) significantly influence a child's developing EF from infancy to toddlerhood. Parenting practices like sensitivity and autonomy support play a key role in this parent-child EF transmission.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
- Family Studies
Background:
- Individual differences in children's executive function (EF) emerge early and show moderate stability.
- Previous research indicates a correlation between maternal EF and child EF, but less is known about paternal EF and early development.
- The combined influence of both parents' EF on early childhood EF development requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of maternal and paternal executive function on children's EF development from 14 to 24 months.
- To examine the mediating role of parenting practices (sensitivity, autonomy support) in the parent-child EF relationship.
- To explore the stability and unity of executive function components during this developmental period.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 484 families across the UK, USA, and Netherlands.
- Assessment of parental executive function (EF) and children's EF at 14 and 24 months.
- Structural equation modeling used to analyze the relationships between parental EF, child EF, and parenting practices.
Main Results:
- Executive function components showed some stability but also increasing unity as children aged.
- Maternal EF significantly predicted child EF, consistent with prior research.
- Paternal EF also demonstrated a significant, additive role in predicting child EF, comparable in magnitude to maternal EF. Parenting practices mediated these associations for both parents.
Conclusions:
- Both mothers and fathers contribute additively to the development of early executive function.
- Parenting practices, specifically sensitivity and autonomy support, are crucial mediators in the transmission of EF from parents to young children.
- These findings highlight the importance of considering both parents' contributions to understanding early executive function development.
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