Predictors of Positive Adaptation in High Risk and Trauma Impacted Youth: The Role of Executive Function and Regulation - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Youth living under the poverty line experience greater degrees of risk and adversity leading to difficulties in
multiple domains of development including academic achievement. Poor academic achievement in high-risk
youth creates a significant lifelong burden, including higher rates of chronic health problems, disproportionate
participation in juvenile justice and mental health systems, lower high school graduation rates, and un- and
underemployment in adulthood. Although the role of executive function (EF) has been established as a
protective factor among high-risk youth, research lacks an understanding of the role of other factors including
social, emotional, and behavioral regulation and functioning, and how these factors interact with EF. This
information is essential to determine how best to intervene to improve outcomes. This project will further our
knowledge through two specific aims. Specific Aim One will evaluate the unique and cumulative contribution of
risk and adversity by dose, duration, and timing on developmental domains including executive functioning,
behavioral and emotional regulation, social function, and academic achievement. We hypothesize adversity will
have a greater, negative effect compared to risk alone, and increased and chronic adversity will relate to lower
overall functioning. Further, following adverse experiences, functioning will decrease across domains before
returning to baseline. Specific Aim Two will assess the direct and indirect relationships between risk and
adversity on academic achievement. We hypothesize the relationship between both risk and adversity and
academic achievement will be at least partially mediated by social functioning, behavioral and emotional
regulation, and executive function. To accomplish our aims, using a community-based sample, we will recruit
150 children ages 8 to 13 years referred for services by their primary teacher due to academic difficulties,
along with a parent or caregiver, and their mental health clinician. Participants will be assessed at three time
points over the course of one year, including a review of their academic records. Using path analysis, we will
test the aims and hypotheses by simultaneously fitting multiple regression models while controlling for the
correlations between outcome variables. By obtaining a greater understanding of the processes involved in the
context of specific models of resilience in this high-risk population, this project promises to aid in the
development of intervention programs and prevention efforts to close widening achievement gaps, mitigate the
long-term effects of risk and adversity, and improve the lives of our most vulnerable youth. This R15
application also offers excellent research training opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students and
will make significant contributions to the enhancement of Pacific University's research infrastructure.
