Self-regulation difficulties in young children with cognitive, emotional and behavioural problems

Anning, Kate 2023. Self-regulation difficulties in young children with cognitive, emotional and behavioural problems. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

This thesis aimed to examine associations between self-regulation (SR) processes, such as executive functions (EFs), and emerging neurodevelopmental and mental health difficulties in children who were referred by teachers for a range of problems at school. Chapter 2 investigated the prevalence of executive function (EF) problems in referred children and how EFs were associated with dimensions of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and anxiety. The sample demonstrated below-average performance on assessments of visuomotor control and attention (55%), cognitive inhibition (29%), cognitive flexibility (28%), and episodic memory (25%). ADHD and ODD symptoms were specifically associated with poor cognitive inhibition and flexibility, whereas ASD and anxiety were associated with better cognitive inhibition and flexibility. Associations between specific symptom dimensions of ADHD (inattention, hyperactivity-impulsivity) and poor cognitive function were examined in Chapter 3, as well as how anxiety may impact these relationships. It was found that cognitive problems were predominantly associated with inattention, as opposed to hyperactivity-impulsivity. Separation anxiety moderated associations between inattention and inhibition; only children without separation anxiety showed significant correlations between inattention and poor performance. Chapter 4 investigated processes involved in ‘hot’ cognitive control and found that low and high reward-seeking were associated with depression and ODD, respectively. We also extracted factors that corresponded to ‘emotional impulsivity’ and ‘loss sensitivity’, which were not independently associated with dimensional symptom severity measures. In summary, findings from this thesis demonstrate that young children with emerging mental health difficulties exhibit difficulties in processes that are important for self-regulation. Furthermore, the results highlight that using a dimensional and transdiagnostic approach may improve our understanding of how mental health difficulties emerge in children, and how self-regulation could be used as an intermediate process to detect those at-risk and develop tailored interventions (discussed in Chapter 5).

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Psychology
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	16 October 2023
Last Modified:	17 Oct 2023 10:19
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/163213

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