A Structural Analysis of Executive Functions and Socioeconomic Status in School-Age Children: Cognitive Factors as Effect Mediators

ARÁN FILIPPETTI, VANESSA, RICHAUD, MARÍA CRISTINA

THE JOURNAL OF GENETIC PSYCHOLOGY. Research & Theory on Human Development.

Taylor & Francis

Lugar: Philadelphia; Año: 2012 vol. 173 p. 393 - 416

Socioeconomic status (SES) is a well-known predictor of cognitive achievement and executive functioning, although the underlying cognitive mediating processes remain unclear. In this study, the authors analyze the association between different socioeconomic indicators and the executive functions (EF) of schoolchildren and the possible cognitive mediating factors of this association.The sample included 254 children aged 7 to 12 years from different SES. The researchers employed a battery of tests to evaluate EF, including the K-BIT task to measure intelligence, and the MFFT-20 to assess the reflexivity-impulsivity (R-I) cognitive style. The results indicate a significant effect of SES on all tested EF. Stepwise regression analysis showed that maternal education level and housing conditions were significant predictors of the majority of EF. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) showed that, although SES had effects on intelligence quotient (IQ), R-I cognitive style, and EF, the association between SES and EF is partly explained by cognitive impulsivity but not by IQ scores. Results are discussed in terms of the mediating cognitive variables that may explain the association between SES and EF and their implications for designing effective intervention programmes in schools.