Sociodemographic predictors and cross-cultural comparisons in tests performance from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Testing Automated Battery (CANTAB) among children aged 6-8 years from Montevideo, Uruguay.

Abstract

Objective: Cross-culturally comparative data on measures of executive function (EF) are essential, but the 6-8-year group remains insufficiently described. This study examined the sociodemographic predictors of EF test performance employing the Cambridge Neuropsychological Testing Automated Battery (CANTAB). It also compared developmental trends in EF among children from Uruguay, the United States, and Mexico.

Method: EFs were assessed with the Intra-dimensional/Extra-dimensional shift, Spatial Span (SSP), and Stockings of Cambridge (SOC) tests from the CANTAB. The study sample consisted of 6-8-year-old children from the Salud Ambiental Montevideo (SAM) cohort in Uruguay. Differences between cohorts were examined, and we performed generalized linear regressions to assess the association between sociodemographic factors, and each EF domain.

Results: The final sample consisted of 525 participants (mean age in months 82.5 ± 6.0). Across all ages, SAM children had significantly lower performance in the SSP and SOC tasks compared to U.S. and Mexican children. On the Intra-dimensional/Extra-dimensional shift task, SAM children had similar scores to U.S. and Mexican children. Mother's intelligence quotient (IQ; β = 0.01; 95% CI [0.005, 0.02]), child's IQ (0.02 [0.02, 0.03]), the HOME total score (0.02 [0.01, 0.03]), as well as HOME subscales of accompaniment (0.13 [0.07, 0.20]), enrichment (0.11 [0.06,0.16]), and physical environment (0.07 [0.03, 0.10]) were positively associated with the span length (SSP task). Child's IQ (0.02 [0.01,0.03]) was positively associated with the number of problems solved on the SOC test.

Conclusion: Uruguayan children perform lower in working memory and planning tests than U.S. children but similarly to Mexican children, while cognitive flexibility is consistent across all groups. Further, mother and child IQ, as well as the home environment, are important predictors of EF. These differences should be examined in the context of diverse cultural values and sociodemographic factors affecting CANTAB construct validity in this population. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).