Cognitive Control Decision-Making Dynamics Across Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms in Youth

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Computational Psychiatry

Background:

• Childhood behavioral problems have lasting effects, but their cognitive underpinnings are unclear.
• Understanding cognitive control deficits is key to addressing childhood psychopathology.
• Previous research often relies on simple reaction time measures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate cognitive control mechanisms in childhood behavioral problems using computational modeling.
• To compare the predictive utility of reaction time (RT) and drift-diffusion models (DDM) in explaining behavioral symptoms.
• To identify specific cognitive control parameters associated with transdiagnostic symptom domains.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a flanker task with both congruent and incongruent conditions.
• Employed traditional reaction time (RT) measures and a drift-diffusion model (DDM) with parameters for boundary separation, bias, drift rate, and non-decision time.
• Analyzed data from 10,343 children (mean age 10.0 years) from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study using simultaneous regression models.

Main Results:

• RT-only models showed slower reaction times correlated with more behavioral problems.
• DDM regressions explained more variance in symptom domains than RT models.
• Impoverished evidence accumulation (DDM drift rate) was linked to both internalizing and externalizing behaviors.
• Reduced non-decision time (DDM) was uniquely associated with rule-breaking and aggressive behaviors.

Conclusions:

• Different facets of cognitive control are specifically associated with distinct childhood behavioral problems.
• Computational modeling offers deeper insights into cognitive control dynamics than RT measures alone.
• Targeting ineffective cognitive control may be crucial for preventing and intervening in childhood psychopathology.