Links Between Child Executive Function and Adjustment: A Three-Site Study

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Cognitive Development
• Cross-Cultural Psychology

Background:

• Cross-site comparisons suggest East Asian children outperform others on executive function (EF) tests.
• Interpreting these differences is challenging due to reliance on school-based testing and lack of measurement invariance studies.
• Existing research has not adequately addressed cross-cultural measurement invariance in executive function assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate executive function (EF) performance and behavioral adjustment in children across different cultural settings.
• To address gaps in cross-site measurement invariance for executive function (EF) assessments.
• To examine the relationship between executive function (EF) and behavioral self-regulation across diverse cultural contexts.

Main Methods:

• Remote, home-based assessments of executive function (EF) were conducted with 1002 children (aged ~5 years) from England, Hong Kong, and mainland China.
• Parental ratings of externalizing and internalizing adjustment problems were collected.
• Data were collected between June 2021 and December 2022.

Main Results:

• Statistical models established partial scalar invariance, indicating measurement consistency across sites.
• No significant differences in executive function (EF) performance were found between the study sites.
• Executive function (EF) task performance demonstrated a consistent inverse association with parent-rated externalizing problems across all sites.

Conclusions:

• The findings support the universal importance of executive function (EF) for behavioral self-regulation.
• Executive function (EF) plays a crucial role in managing externalizing behaviors, irrespective of cultural background.
• Home-based assessments and cross-site measurement invariance analyses provide a more nuanced understanding of executive function (EF) across cultures.