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Associations of prenatal stress with 5-year-old children’s executive function in a low socioeconomic status population

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 May 2024

Daphne M. Vrantsidis Open the ORCID record for Daphne M. Vrantsidis [Opens in a new window] ,
Mark A. Klebanoff ,
Keith Owen Yeates ,
Aaron Murnan ,
Peter Fried ,
Kelly M. Boone ,
Joseph Rausch  and
Sarah A. Keim
Daphne M. Vrantsidis*
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
Mark A. Klebanoff
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, USA Center for Perinatal Research, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, USA Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OH, USA
Keith Owen Yeates
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute and Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
Aaron Murnan
Affiliation:
College of Nursing, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Peter Fried
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Kelly M. Boone
Affiliation:
Center for Biobehavioral Health, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
Joseph Rausch
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, USA Center for Perinatal Research, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
Sarah A. Keim
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, USA Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OH, USA Center for Biobehavioral Health, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
*
Corresponding author: Daphne Maria Vrantsidis; Email: vrantsid@ualberta.ca
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Abstract

Prenatal stress has a significant, but small, negative effect on children’s executive function (EF) in middle and high socioeconomic status (SES) households. Importantly, rates and severity of prenatal stress are higher and protective factors are reduced in lower SES households, suggesting prenatal stress may be particularly detrimental for children’s EF in this population. This study examined whether prenatal stress was linked to 5-year-old’s EF in a predominantly low SES sample and child sex moderated this association, as males may be more vulnerable to adverse prenatal experiences. Participants were 132 mother-child dyads drawn from a prospective prenatal cohort. Mothers reported on their depression symptoms, trait anxiety, perceived stress, everyday discrimination, and sleep quality at enrollment and once each trimester, to form a composite prenatal stress measure. Children’s EF was assessed at age 5 years using the parent-report Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function - Preschool (BRIEF-P) Global Executive Composite subscale and neuropsychological tasks completed by the children. Mixed models revealed higher prenatal stress was associated with lower BRIEF-P scores, indicating better EF, for females only. Higher prenatal stress was associated with lower performance on neuropsychological EF measures for both males and females. Results add to the limited evidence about prenatal stress effects on children’s EF in low SES households.

Keywords

early childhoodexecutive functionpregnancyprenatal stresssex differencessocioeconomic status
Type
Regular Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 37 , Issue 2 , May 2025 , pp. 1044 - 1053
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© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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