Executive functions performance in Latin American preschoolers: ethnic and socioeconomic variability within a shared...

Most existing research on preschoolers' executive functions (EF) performance across ethnic and socioeconomic strata has focused on Asian, European, and English-speaking populations, leaving other culturally and linguistically diverse groups-such as those in Latin America-comparatively understudied. Thus, this study explored the EF performance of preschoolers from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic status (SES) within a shared geographic context. A total of 1,203 Ecuadorian children (606 boys and 597 girls), aged 36 to 60 months (M = 51.83, SD = 5.608), completed the Zoo Locations (WPPSI-IV; Wechsler, 2014) to assess working memory (WM) and Statue (NEPSY-II, Korkman et al., 2014) to assess inhibitory control (IC). The sample was categorized into six ethnic groups and two SES (medium and low). Findings suggest that Ecuadorian preschoolers' EF performance varies across ethnic groups and is differentially influenced by SES. Afro-Ecuadorian children exhibited lower WM performance across SES, whereas Montubios and Mestizos from the Coast (both low-SES) outperformed their medium-SES counterparts. Montubios and Indigenous from the Amazon (both low-SES) outperformed others in IC. Overall, findings indicate that EF development in Ecuadorian preschoolers varies systematically across ethnic groups and is differentially shaped by socioeconomic conditions. These results underscore the importance of considering ethnic and socioeconomic diversity when assessing early executive development and when designing context-sensitive assessments and interventions.