Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Betsy Hoza
Second Advisor
Tiffany Hutchins
Abstract
The objective of the current study was to examine verbal working memory, inhibitory control, and processing speed abilities as mediators of the associations between preschool children’s language ability levels and ADHD symptom levels. Eighty-two preschool children (54.9% male assigned at birth, Mage(months) = 52.57, SDage(months) = 8.54) and their parents/guardians participated in the current study. Children completed standardized cognitive and receptive, expressive, and overall language ability assessments, and parents reported ADHD symptom levels during a two-hour study visit. I ran two parallel and six simple mediation models examining the indirect associations between two focal language ability predictors (i.e., receptive or expressive language ability levels) and ADHD symptom levels through verbal working memory, inhibitory control, and processing speed abilities. Child sex assigned at birth, age, parent education levels, levels of access to financial resources, and dual language learner status were included as covariates. Maximum likelihood estimation with robust standard errors was utilized to address missing data and retain the use of the full study sample in mediation models. Results highlighted that there were total indirect effects of both receptive and expressive language ability levels on ADHD symptom levels through the combination of verbal working memory, inhibitory control, and processing speed abilities in the parallel mediation models. There were no significant specific indirect effects in either parallel mediation model; however, there was a marginal specific indirect effect through inhibitory control abilities in both parallel mediation models. In the simple mediation models, results highlighted that there were marginally significant indirect effects of both receptive and expressive language ability levels on ADHD symptom levels through inhibitory control abilities. There were no indirect effects of either receptive or expressive language ability levels on ADHD symptom levels through verbal working memory or processing speed abilities in these models. The findings of the current study suggest that when considered together, preschoolers’ verbal working memory, inhibitory control, and processing speed abilities may help explain the links between both receptive and expressive language ability levels and ADHD symptom levels. The results also provide preliminary evidence that inhibitory control deficits may be an explanatory risk factor for co-occurring language problems and elevated ADHD symptom levels; however, trend-level findings ultimately highlight the need for future research. Implications for early childhood assessment and intervention related to co-occurring language problems and ADHD symptoms and directions for continued research are discussed.
Language
en
Number of Pages
100 p.
Recommended Citation
Dennis, Marissa, "An Examination Of Cognitive Capacities As Mediators Of The Associations Between Children’s Language Abilities And Adhd Symptoms" (2024). Graduate College Dissertations and Theses. 1831.
https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/graddis/1831