Quilty Lena C, Tempelaar Wanda, Andrade Brendan F, Kidd Sean A, Lunsky Yona, Chen Sheng, Wang Wei, Wong Jimmy K Y, Lau Chloe, Sedrak Andrew B, Kelly Rachel, Sivakumar Harijah, Jani Melanie, Ameis Stephanie H, Cleverley Kristin, Goldstein Benjamin I, Felsky Daniel, Dickie Erin W, Foussias George, Kozloff Nicole, Nikolova Yuliya S, Polillo Alexia, Diaconescu Andreea O, Wheeler Anne L, Courtney Darren B, Hawke Lisa D, Rotenberg Martin, Voineskos Aristotle N
Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging. 2024 Mar;9(3):265-274. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2023.10.012. Epub 2023 Nov 17.
Both cognition and educational achievement in youths are linked to psychosis risk. One major aim of the Toronto Adolescent and Youth (TAY) Cohort Study is to characterize how cognitive and educational achievement trajectories inform the course of psychosis spectrum symptoms (PSSs), functioning, and suicidality. Here, we describe the protocol for the cognitive and educational data and early baseline data.
The cognitive assessment design is consistent with youth population cohort studies, including the NIH Toolbox, Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, Wechsler Matrix Reasoning Task, and Little Man Task. Participants complete an educational achievement questionnaire, and report cards are requested. Completion rates, descriptive data, and differences across PSS status are reported for the first participants (N = 417) ages 11 to 24 years, who were recruited between May 4, 2021, and February 2, 2023.
Nearly 84% of the sample completed cognitive testing, and 88.2% completed the educational questionnaire, whereas report cards were collected for only 40.3%. Modifications to workflows were implemented to improve data collection. Participants who met criteria for PSSs demonstrated lower performance than those who did not on numerous key cognitive indices (p < .05) and also had more academic/educational problems.
Following youths longitudinally enabled trajectory mapping and prediction based on cognitive and educational performance in relation to PSSs in treatment-seeking youths. Youths with PSSs had lower cognitive performance and worse educational outcomes than youths without PSSs. Results show the feasibility of collecting data on cognitive and educational outcomes in a cohort of youths seeking treatment related to mental illness and substance use.
