A Longitudinal Study of Adolescent‐to‐Young Adult Executive Function Development in Seven Countries
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Executive functioning (EF) is an important developing self-regulatory process that has implications for academic, social, and emotional outcomes. Most work in EF has focused on childhood, and less has examined the development of EF throughout adolescence and into emerging adulthood. The present study assessed longitudinal trajectories of EF from ages 10 to 21 in a diverse, international sample. 1093 adolescents (50.3% female) from eight locations in seven countries completed computerized EF tasks (Stroop, Tower of London [ToL], Working Memory [WM]) at ages 10, 14, 17, and 21. Latent growth curve models were estimated to understand the average performance at age 10 and the change in performance over time for each task. Meta-analytic techniques were used to assess the heterogeneity in estimates between study sites. On average, EF task performance improved across adolescence into young adulthood with substantial between-site heterogeneity. Additionally, significant individual differences in EF task performance at age 10 and change in EF task performance over time characterized the full sample. EF improves throughout adolescence into young adulthood, making it a potentially important time for intervention to improve self-regulation.
Source: Developmental Science
DOI: 10.1111/desc.70040
Authors: Ann Folker, Christina Bertrand, Yelim Hong, Laurence Steinberg, Natasha Duell, Lei Chang, Laura Di Giunta, Kenneth A. Dodge, Sevtap Gurdal, Daranee Junla, Jennifer E. Lansford, Paul Oburu, Concetta Pastorelli, Ann T. Skinner, Emma Sorbring, Marc H. Bornstein, Liliana Maria Uribe Tirado, Saengduean Yotanyamaneewong, Liane Peña Alampay, Suha M. Al‐Hassan, Dario Bacchini, Kirby Deater‐Deckard
Institutions: University of Massachusetts Amherst, The University of Texas at Austin, Temple University, California Polytechnic State University, University of Macau, Sapienza University of Rome, Duke University, University West, Chiang Mai University, Maseno University, United Nations Children's Fund, Institute for Fiscal Studies, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Universidad de San Buenaventura, Ateneo de Manila University, University of Naples Federico II
Language: English
Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
Awards: G2119057392, Duke Population Research Center, Center for the Study of Adolescent Risk and Resilience, Parent Behavior and Child Adjustment Across Cultures, Childhood, Adolescence, and Covid-Related Risk and Protective Factors in the Development of Adjustment in Early Adulthood Across Cultures
OpenAlex ID: W4411418283