Success in adult life depends, to a large extent, on factors such as emotional regulation and cognitive skills developed during early childhood. For this reason, executive functions (EF) such as working memory (WM) and inhibitory control (IC) have attracted attention in various fields, especially in education, due to their close relationship with learning.
This is due to the prominence of WM in processing information during the execution of a mathematical calculation, a complex thought or a task that requires more concentration, and IQ as a function that allows the child to regulate their behavior.
There is an extensive body of research in European, Asian and English-speaking environments in which possible interpretations of the differences found (in some cases) in the preschool population's performance in tests that measure these EFs have been proposed. However, similar studies are lacking in Latin America. Consequently, there is a gap in knowledge about how these functions develop in preschool boys and girls from this region.
A pioneering study of its kind
To fill this gap, researchers from CIMCYC, in collaboration with a researcher from the University of Otavalo and the School of Psychology of the University of the Americas, developed a pioneering study in Latin America to analyze the performance of Ecuadorian preschoolers in tests of working memory and inhibitory control, considering different age intervals and gender.
The study included 982 Ecuador preschoolers aged 42 to 65 months, divided into 496 boys (M = 53.77; SD = 5.598) and 486 girls (M = 53.65; SD = 5.834), from nine cities. Children were administered direct tests to assess each executive function, while their legal representatives (usually the mother) completed a sociodemographic survey. The assessment protocol was implemented between 2019 and 2023, with an interruption caused by restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Results with theoretical, scientific and social implications of the first order
The results show an upward trend in the development of the functions assessed, considering the four age intervals studied (six months each), which aligns with studies conducted in other contexts. However, a notable finding was that girls performed better on IQ than boys in the earliest age interval. Differences in this executive function are evident at the onset of contact with the educational system, rather than later.
This result suggests that the differences in inhibitory control (IC) have their origin in the home, possibly influenced by gender biases in the behavioral modeling applied by fathers and mothers. Thus, behaviors instilled in boys and girls according to family stereotypes are reflected in the tests. This interpretation highlights the role of preschools in fostering learning based on democratic parameters to ensure equitable conditions and opportunities for all preschool children.
Implications and future applications
The study results have a significant impact because they focus on early childhood, a key stage of human development. In turn, it has educational, social, welfare and psychometric implications. The responsibility of the family and the academic context in modeling unbiased behavior is, without a doubt, the main element of reflection that this study contributes. From this arises the need for new studies that examine the factors associated with these results, such as culture, parental styles, parenting patterns, the methodology of preschools and the psychological profile of the mediators responsible for the care of the preschool population.
Reference
López-Vallejo, S., Burneo-Garcés, C., & Pérez-García, M. (2024). Development of working memory and inhibitory control in early childhood: Cross-sectional analysis by age intervals and gender in Ecuadorian preschoolers. PLOS ONE 19(5): e0299394. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0299394.