Child Neuropsychology最新文献

We examined whether DSM-5-TR ADHD presentations (inattentive, hyperactive/impulsive, combined) exhibit meaningful neurocognitive differences under examiner-supervised digital assessment. Children with ADHD (N = 193; 7-12 years) completed the CNS Vital Signs battery following diagnostic reconfirmation and stimulant washout; presentation specifiers were derived from parent SNAP-IV ratings. Ten age-normed domains were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis tests with false discovery rate control (q = .05), Bayesian ANOVA, and equivalence testing (TOST; d =  ±0.30). No domain differed by presentation after correction (all FDR-adjusted p values = .980; ε² ≤ 0.015). Bayesian factors favored models excluding the presentation factor (BF_inclusion = 0.005-0.011). Observed differences were small (max d = 0.25) and fell within prespecified equivalence bounds, although TOST did not reach p < .05 for strict equivalence confirmation. Multivariately, presentation labels explained negligible variance. In contrast, unsupervised clustering identified two "Average" and "Low" performance profiles that were independent of DSM-5-TR labels. Results support substantial neurocognitive overlap across presentations under standardized testing conditions. Data-driven profiles provided a complementary, descriptive framework for characterizing heterogeneity to inform educational planning alongside symptom reports. Findings should be interpreted in light of mono-informant presentation assignment and potential underdetection of comorbidities.

This study aimed to examine the moderating mediating role of adolescent gender and the mediating effect of physical fitness on screen time and executive function. Conducted from September to December 2024, the study recruited 3639 adolescents from six cities - Yantai, Changzhi, Jishou, Xianyang, Kunming, and Changchun - representing China's six major administrative regions. Screen time was assessed using the Physical Activity Level Evaluation for Children and Adolescents Aged 7-18Years. Physical fitness was evaluated via a fitness index calculated from seven physical fitness test indicators. Executive function was measured using a task-prompted paradigm. Physical fitness index mediated the relationship between screen time and working memory reaction times (1-back, 2-back). In the 1-back task, the indirect effect size was 3.281, accounting for 14.58% of the total effect. The indirect effect in the 2-back task was 1.190, accounting for 7.54% of the total effect. Additionally, gender moderated the relationship between adolescent screen time and 1-back task reaction time. and the relationship between adolescent screen time and reaction time on the 2-back task without gender moderation. Physical fitness index partially mediates the relationship between screen time and working memory in adolescents, and gender moderates the association between physical fitness index and 1-back reaction time.

There is limited understanding of adaptive functioning in young children with congenital heart disease despite ample evidence demonstrating neurodevelopmental impairment in this population and the relevance of adaptive functioning to independent living and quality of life. This study aims to describe adaptive functioning in young children with congenital heart disease. Participants (n = 104) with histories of congenital heart disease, ages 2-5 years, were clinically referred for outpatient cardiac neurodevelopmental evaluation at a large academic medical center between March 2020 and July 2024. English-monolingual and Spanish-bilingual participants and their caregivers were included in the sample. Retrospective data obtained through the center's Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program's clinical registry included standardized measures of adaptive, developmental, and cognitive functioning. Descriptive and correlation analyses were conducted. Adaptive skills and cognitive abilities were mostly in the low average to below average ranges. Significant associations were established between adaptive skills and developmental and cognitive abilities. Lower adaptive skills were associated with the presence of a genetic syndrome, whereas higher adaptive skills were associated with higher parental education; further, higher conceptual skills were evidenced in females. Implications of the findings and opportunities for future directions are discussed.

The "Simple View of Reading" model postulates that reading comprehension (RC) is based on two component skills: basic reading ability and language comprehension. However, others suggest that various aspects of executive functioning (EF) contribute to RC. Thus, we examined EF in a comprehensive fashion to determine which aspects predict RC and to challenge the Simple View of Reading. Although numerous studies have examined working memory as a contributor to RC, and several have examined other specific aspects of EF, ours may be the first to assess multiple aspects of EF as predictors while controlling both basic reading and listening comprehension. Participants included a mixed sample of 250 children, aged 8-12 years. Multiple hierarchical regression was used to predict RC, with working memory, shifting, inhibition, problem-solving, planning, and nonverbal fluency being the independent variables, controlling basic reading, listening comprehension, and IQ. Results indicated that working memory, problem-solving, and nonverbal fluency predicted RC. As we used a cloze RC task, one likely needs WM to hold the passage in mind, and problem-solving and fluency/divergent thinking to derive the best word to complete the passage. In addition, our data support a multifaceted RC paradigm that includes EF over the Simple View of Reading.

The present study takes a neurophysiological approach to investigate the inhibitory processes of children with reading difficulties. The N2, an event-related potential related to inhibitory control, was elicited in a Go/No-go task with an emotional condition and a neutral condition. We compared the N2 amplitudes in children with and without reading difficulties and tested the associations between N2 amplitudes and reading skills. Fifty-two English-speaking elementary schoolers (32 typically developing children and 20 children with reading difficulties) completed standardized reading-language tests and a Go/No-go task with a neutral condition and an emotional condition. The No-go N2 amplitude and the ∆N2 (a difference between Go and No-go amplitudes) were extracted. First, we found a group difference; typically developing children showed significantly different Go and No-go N2 amplitudes, but children with reading difficulties did not. Second, the emotional ∆N2 predicted unique variance in reading comprehension beyond working memory, receptive vocabulary, and word reading efficiency. The present study advances our theoretical understanding of reading by providing neurophysiological evidence for the role of inhibitory processes in reading comprehension. The present study is unique in examining the interaction between emotion and inhibitory processes as it relates to reading. The findings also lay the foundation for identifying neural markers of reading difficulties.

Access to standardized cognitive assessment remains limited in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs), with direct implications for the identification and support of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Among these, Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC) and Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder ADHD are highly prevalent and frequently co-occurring yet characterized by distinct cognitive profiles. Online assessment methods represent a promising avenue for scalable, cost-effective screening and research. The present study investigated whether a brief online cognitive task could reliably distinguish performance patterns among children and adolescents with ADHD, ASC, both (ASC + ADHD) and a group of typically developing (TD) peers. Children between the ages of 8 and 14 from diverse regions of Mexico completed a brief online working memory task, where they were required to remember either the identity(N = 61) or the emotional expression (N = 99) of a face. Task completion rates were high, demonstrating the feasibility of remote administration (84.6%). Clinical groups showed expected differences relative to TD peers: the ADHD group was distinguished by poorer overall working memory performance and increased intra-subject variability. The ASC group was selectively impaired in the emotion task. This study demonstrates the feasibility of deploying online cognitive tasks in LMIC contexts, providing a scalable approach to developmental research and early identification and referral. Intra-subject variability is a robust marker for ADHD, while careful future work should continue to disentangle overlapping disorders.

Individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) frequently experience difficulties in social information processing, social awareness, and exhibit inappropriate social behaviors, which adversely affect their relationships, particularly in adolescence period. This study explores the role of social skills, social intelligence, and executive dysfunction in shaping peer relations in adolescents with ADHD. The study included 151 adolescents with ADHD, receiving medical treatment and 70 healthy controls (HC). Participants completed the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY), the Social Support Appraisals Scale (SSAS), the Peer Relations Scale (PRS), and the Tromsø Social Intelligence Scale (TSIS); parents completed the Conners Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). Adolescents with ADHD scored significantly higher on MESSY- Inappropriate Assertiveness/Impulsiveness, whereas lower scores on MESSY-appropriate social skills, SSAS friend and teacher subscales, total score, TSIS, and PRS subscales except closeness compared to HC. Lower social information processing and higher inappropriate Assertiveness/Impulsiveness scores were significantly associated with a comorbid externalizing disorder. ADHD symptom severity and level of executive dysfunction were negatively correlated with social skills, appropriate social behaviors, and social support. Social intelligence mediated the relationship between social skills and peer relationships. Mediational analyses have revealed that, each one-unit increase in the TSIS score was associated with a 0.375-point increase in the PRS score. Social impairment may be a key mechanism linking ADHD symptoms to peer relationships, even in adolescents receiving medical treatment. Targeted interventions could enhance peer interactions and social support in adolescents with ADHD.

The study aimed to examine the characteristics of cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS) in children diagnosed with tic disorders and to compare them with healthy controls. Seventy-one children (35 with tic disorder, 36 healthy controls) and adolescents were assessed using the Pediatric Daytime Sleepiness Scale (PDSS), the Child and Adolescent Behavior Inventory Slow Cognitive Tempo Scale (CABI-SCT), Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS-CV), Conners's Parent Rating Scale-Revised Short form (CPRS-RS), and Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS). The tic disorder group was compared with the healthy control group, and differences were found in the PDSS, CABI-SCT, RCADS-CV, and CPRS-RS scores (p < .05). Additionally, the YGTSS and the RCADS-CV total anxiety and depression scores were correlated, as well as the Conners ADHD index (p < .05). The findings indicate that CDS symptoms are more prominent in children and adolescents with tic disorder and are accompanied by increased emotional symptoms, behavioral difficulties, and daytime sleepiness. To our knowledge, this study contributes to the literature by being the first to investigate the relationship between tic disorder and CDS symptoms.

Youth with cognitive disengagement syndrome (CDS) report experiencing a decoupling or disengagement of effortful mental process from their external environment and hypoactivity. To many familiar with trauma, these symptoms are similar to post-traumatic dissociation, yet there is limited research on CDS and trauma experiences. Black and/or Latiné youth are often excluded from research despite experiencing higher levels of trauma than peers. Thus, the present study examined how CDS is associated with trauma for Black and/or Latiné youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This is the first study to examine individual (e.g. PTSD, perceived stress, developmental trauma), community (i.e. community violence, COVID19), and systemic level trauma (i.e. discrimination) and their associations with CDS. Participants were 50 Black and/or Latiné adolescents with ADHD. Path analyses were conducted to assess how different aspects of trauma affected CDS symptom severity. One hundred percent of youth reported at least one trauma exposure. 20% of the sample had PTSD and 7 participants were provided a diagnosis of developmental trauma disorder (DTD) on their integrated report (14%). ADHD inattention, perceived stress, daily and lifetime discrimination, COVID19, and PTSD were moderately associated with CDS. The second path analysis only included the six factors of DTD, with affect regulation and physiological factors being moderately, positively associated with CDS and attachment factor being moderately, negatively associated with CDS. It is necessary to assess for trauma at the individual symptom level, community level, and systems level in Black and/or Latiné youth with ADHD who also experience high levels of CDS.

Considering the stress of parenting a child through cancer and given prior findings that parental stress can affect children's neuropsychological functioning, the present study examined the relative effects of treatment and family environment on attentional functioning in pediatric cancer survivors. Our sample of survivors (N = 122; 40.9% female; 51.8% non-Hispanic White) was 3.77 ± 3.58 years post-treatment. Multiple linear regression analyses examined demographic, treatment, and family environment factors with respect to parent-reported, self-reported, and performance-based attention. Treatment factors did not significantly predict any form of attentional functioning. Lower socioeconomic status and less social support significantly predicted greater parent-reported hyperactivity and attention problems. Greater parental stress significantly predicted greater parent-reported attention problems, but not parent-reported hyperactivity. Family environment factors uniquely accounted for the most variance in predicted parent-report hyperactivity (total r_s² = .489) and attention problems (total r_s² = .686). Although non-significant, worse parental anxiety and depression also were associated with greater parent-reported hyperactivity and attention problems. Results suggest that family environment factors can strongly predict parent-reported hyperactivity and attention problems in pediatric cancer survivors. These findings highlight the importance of assessing parental stress and emotional functioning in future research on neuropsychological outcomes for pediatric cancer survivors, with potential implications for clinical interventions.