Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Department of Educational Psychology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA.
Dev Sci. 2020 May;23(3):e12917. doi: 10.1111/desc.12917. Epub 2019 Nov 19.
Although there is substantial evidence that socioeconomic status (SES) predicts children's executive function (EF), the mechanisms underlying this association are poorly understood. This study tested the utility of two theories proposed to link SES to children's EF: the family stress model and the family investment model. Data came from the Midwestern Infant Development Study (N = 151). To measure SES, parental education and income were assessed during pregnancy, and income was also assessed when children were 6 and 36 months old. Children's EF, operationalized as working memory/inhibitory control (WMIC) and self-control, was assessed at 36 months of age, along with potential mediators including maternal psychological distress, harsh parenting, and cognitive stimulation. Using structural equation modeling, we tested simultaneous pathways from SES to EF: (a) via maternal psychological distress to harsh parenting (family stress model) and (b) via cognitive stimulation (family investment model). Of the SES measures, lower education predicted poorer WMIC directly and indirectly via greater maternal psychological distress. Lower education also predicted poorer self-control via greater maternal psychological distress. This effect was partially suppressed by an indirect path from lower education to better self-control via greater psychological distress and increased harsh parenting. Cognitive stimulation did not act as a mediator. Income was not directly or indirectly associated with EF. These findings provide partial support for the family stress model and suggest that family functioning is an important proximal mechanism for children's EF development. This study also highlights the importance of considering SES as a multidimensional construct.
尽管有大量证据表明社会经济地位（SES）可预测儿童的执行功能（EF），但人们对这种关联的机制知之甚少。本研究测试了两种将 SES 与儿童 EF 联系起来的理论的有效性：家庭压力模型和家庭投资模型。数据来自中西部婴儿发育研究（N=151）。为了衡量 SES，在怀孕期间评估了父母的教育程度和收入，并且在孩子 6 个月和 36 个月时也评估了收入。在 36 个月时评估了儿童的 EF，操作化为工作记忆/抑制控制（WMIC）和自我控制，同时还评估了潜在的中介因素，包括母亲的心理困扰、严厉的育儿方式和认知刺激。使用结构方程模型，我们同时测试了 SES 到 EF 的路径：（a）通过母亲的心理困扰到严厉的育儿方式（家庭压力模型）和（b）通过认知刺激（家庭投资模型）。在 SES 测量中，较低的教育水平直接预测 WMIC 较差，间接通过更大的母亲心理困扰来预测。较低的教育水平也通过更大的母亲心理困扰来预测自我控制能力较差。这种影响部分被通过较低的教育水平通过更大的心理困扰和增加严厉的育儿方式来更好地自我控制的间接途径所抑制。认知刺激不是中介。收入与 EF 没有直接或间接的关联。这些发现为家庭压力模型提供了部分支持，并表明家庭功能是儿童 EF 发展的重要近端机制。本研究还强调了将 SES 视为多维结构的重要性。
