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Selvam S, Thomas T, Shetty P, Thennarasu K, Raman V, Khanna D, Mehra R, Kurpad AV, Srinivasan K. Development of norms for executive functions in typically-developing Indian urban preschool children and its association with nutritional status. Child Neuropsychol 2016; 24:226-246. [PMID: 27907279 DOI: 10.1080/09297049.2016.1254761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Executive functions (EFs) are essential and important for achieving success in children's everyday lives and play a fundamental role in children's cognitive, academic, social, emotional and behavioral functioning. A cross-sectional study was carried out to develop age- and sex-specific norms for EFs using the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function - Preschool Version (BRIEF-P) among 2- to 5-year-olds from urban Bangalore, India. In addition, the association between EFs and anthropometric measures, a marker of nutritional status, is also examined. Primary caregivers of 412 children, equally distributed by age and sex, participated. Raw scores for each domain and indices were converted to standard t-scores and percentiles were computed. A t-score at or above 63 corresponding to the 90th percentile was considered as the cutoff for executive dysfunction in this sample. The prevalence of executive dysfunction is 10% based on the Global Executive Composite score of the BRIEF-P. The cutoff score for identifying executive dysfunction using existing United States (US) norms is higher compared to the cutoff score obtained in the current study. Therefore, using US norms for Indian children could result in the prevalence of executive dysfunction been underestimated. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that stunted and underweight children have significantly elevated EF scores after adjusting for age, sex and socioeconomic status (SES; p < .01). A greater understanding of EFs in preschool children is important for the early identification of executive dysfunction and implementing interventions to improve their future prospects. This study also shows that undernourished children are more likely to have executive dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumithra Selvam
- a Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics , St. John's Research Institute, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
| | - Tinku Thomas
- a Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics , St. John's Research Institute, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
| | - Priya Shetty
- b Division of Mental Health and Neurosciences, St. John's Research Institute , St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
| | - K Thennarasu
- c Department of Biostatistics , National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) , Bangalore , India
| | - Vijaya Raman
- d Department of Psychology , St. John's Medical College and Hospital, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
| | - Deepti Khanna
- e Research & Development , GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd , Gurgaon , India
| | - Ruchika Mehra
- e Research & Development , GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Ltd , Gurgaon , India
| | - Anura V Kurpad
- f Department of Physiology, St. John's Medical College and Hospital , St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
| | - Krishnamachari Srinivasan
- g Department of Psychiatry , St. John's Medical College and Hospital, St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences , Bangalore , India
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Castellanos I, Kronenberger WG, Pisoni DB. Questionnaire-based assessment of executive functioning: Psychometrics. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY-CHILD 2016; 7:93-109. [PMID: 27841670 DOI: 10.1080/21622965.2016.1248557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The psychometric properties of the Learning, Executive, and Attention Functioning (LEAF) scale were investigated in an outpatient clinical pediatric sample. As a part of clinical testing, the LEAF scale, which broadly measures neuropsychological abilities related to executive functioning and learning, was administered to parents of 118 children and adolescents referred for psychological testing at a pediatric psychology clinic; 85 teachers also completed LEAF scales to assess reliability across different raters and settings. Scores on neuropsychological tests of executive functioning and academic achievement were abstracted from charts. Psychometric analyses of the LEAF scale demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency, parent-teacher inter-rater reliability in the small to large effect size range, and test-retest reliability in the large effect size range, similar to values for other executive functioning checklists. Correlations between corresponding subscales on the LEAF and other behavior checklists were large, while most correlations with neuropsychological tests of executive functioning and achievement were significant but in the small to medium range. Results support the utility of the LEAF as a reliable and valid questionnaire-based assessment of delays and disturbances in executive functioning and learning. Applications and advantages of the LEAF and other questionnaire measures of executive functioning in clinical neuropsychology settings are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina Castellanos
- a Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery , Ohio State University , Columbus , Ohio , USA
| | - William G Kronenberger
- b Department of Psychiatry , Indiana University School of Medicine , Indianapolis , Indiana , USA
| | - David B Pisoni
- c Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences , Indiana University Bloomington , Bloomington , Indiana , USA
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