An important set of skills
The study, which was published on February 17 by the journal Developmental Science, grew out of a research collaboration that Obradović formed with Professor Aisha Yousafzai at Harvard University and researchers at Aga Khan University in Karachi, Pakistan.
“We chose to study executive functions because they’re an important set of skills that promote adaptation and resilience,” said Obradović, who directs the SPARK Lab at Stanford, a project researching the impact of adversity on children’s learning and well-being. “They’ve become a good marker for children’ capacities.”
Executive function (EF) skills enable children to control impulses, ignore distractions, remember relevant information and shift between competing rules or demands for their attention. Studies in high-income countries have linked strong EFs in children to lower levels of behavioral and emotional problems, greater engagement in school and stronger academic skills.
But “there really wasn’t any research assessing EFs in preschoolers from a very disadvantaged setting where children face extreme, chronic adversity,” Obradović said. “EF skills support successful school transition and engagement. If we can measure them well, we can start to identify what in this environment can promote them.”
Designing tasks carefully
She and her team measured executive functioning in 1,144 at-risk preschoolers in rural Pakistan, using a battery of play-based tasks adapted specifically for this population. They spent months working with local experts to develop tasks that were relevant and useful.
“To conduct the kind of research that’s typically done in a high-income country in the Western world, you need to be careful and thoughtful in ensuring the tasks are culturally and developmentally appropriate,” Obradović said.