Episodic foresight, episodic memory, and executive functions in children engaged with Child Protective Services: The role of cumulative risk

Previous studies have determined that exposure to risk and adversities may impair children’s cognitive abilities. In particular, children engaged with Child Protective Services (CPS) seem to be at greater risk for enhanced detrimental effects resulting from the cumulative risk factors to which they are exposed. However, little is known about children’s future thinking when they face adverse circumstances, and it is not clear how the associations among episodic foresight abilities, episodic memory, and executive functions work with children under such circumstances. The current study describes the episodic foresight abilities of CPS-involved school-aged children, its association with other cognitive abilities, and how this association is affected by the exposure to cumulative risk and adversity factors. Episodic foresight, episodic memory, executive functions, and a composite of cumulative risk factors were analyzed in a sample of 95 school-aged children engaged with CPS in Portugal. Results suggest the detrimental effect of cumulative risk on the episodic foresight abilities of CPS-involved children. Episodic memory and cognitive flexibility were significant predictors of episodic foresight abilities, and cumulative risk exposure moderated the relation between episodic memory and episodic foresight. The current study provides a better understanding of the influences of multiple adversities on CPS-involved children’s episodic foresight abilities and related cognitive outcomes.