Commentary: Cognitive stimulation and executive functions in the prevention and treatment of childhood disorders – reflection on Phillips et al., 2023

Walter Matthys*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalComment/Letter to the editorAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The study by Phillips et al. (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 2023) shows that preschool executive functions (EF) are a transdiagnostic mechanism through which deprivation increases the risk for psychopathology in adolescence. In addition, deprivation appeared to be a key mechanism through which economic adversity (i.e., lower income-to-needs ratio and maternal education) undermines EF and increases the risk for psychopathology in adolescence. In this commentary, implications for early prevention and treatment of childhood disorders are discussed. In view of optimal EF development attention is needed to cognitive and social stimulation both in: (a) selective prevention targeting preschool children at high risk for childhood disorders due to low socioeconomic status; (b) indicated prevention targeting preschool children with minimal but detectable symptoms from low socioeconomic status families; and (c) treatment targeting preschool children with a clinical disorder from low socioeconomic status families.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1517-1519
Number of pages3
JournalJournal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines
Volume64
Issue number10
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Funding

Much gratitude to Dennis Schutter for providing feedback on a draft of this commentary. The author co-authored several studies with EF tasks developed at the Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA. The author has declared that they have no competing or potential conflicts of interest.

FundersFunder number
University of Nebraska-Lincoln

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