Assessing the Longitudinal Associations Between Decision-Making Processes and Attention Problems in Early Adolescence

Area of Science:

• Developmental Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Background:

• Cognitive functions and psychopathology develop concurrently in youth.
• The temporal dynamics of the relationship between decision-making and attention problems are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the intertwined development of decision-making processes and attention problems.
• To examine how these processes influence each other from late childhood to mid-adolescence.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal data from 8918 participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (ages 9-13).
• Hierarchical drift-diffusion modeling of stop-signal task data.
• Parent-reported attention problems (Child Behavior Checklist) analyzed with latent change score models.

Main Results:

• Faster drift rate (evidence accumulation) correlated with lower baseline inattention and greater reduction in inattention over time.
• Baseline drift rate and attention problems predicted changes in each other, particularly in females.
• Response caution and non-decision time were not significantly associated with attention problems.

Conclusions:

• The study supports findings of impaired evidence accumulation in attention problems.
• Developmental changes in decision-making, specifically evidence accumulation, contribute to developmental changes in attention problems.
• No significant sex differences were observed in these associations.