Executive functions in children with specific learning disorders: Shedding light on a complex profile through...

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Developmental Neuroscience
• Educational Psychology

Background:

• Executive Functions (EFs) are critical for learning and adaptation.
• EF impairments are common in children with Specific Learning Disorders (SLDs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate executive functions in children with SLD.
• To explore the role of specific EF subprocesses (stimuli processing, processing speed) in SLD.

Main Methods:

• Compared 57 SLD children with 114 typically developing (TD) children.
• Utilized a web-based teleassessment platform with four EF tasks (inhibition, interference control, shifting, updating).

Main Results:

• SLD children performed significantly lower on all EF tasks compared to TD children.
• Performance differences persisted regardless of stimulus type or condition.
• Mediation analyses indicated EF subprocesses explain group differences.

Conclusions:

• Children with SLD exhibit widespread executive function deficits.
• Specific EF subprocesses, including processing speed, mediate these deficits.
• Findings offer an interpretative model for understanding EF impairments in SLD.