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The Association Between Performance-Based Measures and Caregiver Ratings of Executive Functioning Among Children with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

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Abstract

Research to date has found discrepancies between performance-based measures and caregiver ratings of executive functioning among children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). These studies are limited by the participant sample, the assessment measures available, and the type of analyses used to examine this relationship. The main objective of the current study was to extend the literature on the association between tests and caregiver ratings of executive functioning by addressing limitations of past research and examining this association among children with prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) with and without a diagnosis of FASD. Participants were 212 children with PAE, including 99 children with and 113 without FASD. Caregiver ratings and most of the scores on tests of executive functioning were above and below the normative mean range, respectively. None of the correlations between tests and caregiver ratings of executive functioning were significant across the groups. The results of this study suggest that tests and caregiver ratings of executive functioning may not measure the same construct or other factors may be impacting the strength and significance of the relationship. Directions for future research and clinical implications are provided.

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Data availability

The data is housed at the Manitoba FASD Centre at SSCY Centre and is not permitted to be removed or electronically transmitted from the premises.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the participating families and their children; the families that inspired this research; the Manitoba FASD Centre, SSCY Centre; The Department of Clinical Health Psychology, University of Manitoba; The Excellence in Neurodevelopment & Rehabilitation Research in Child Health (ENRRICH)—Research Theme; The Children's Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM); Cari Slayen for her assistance with data entry, literature review, and manuscript preparation; Marvin Routley, Sydney Lisi, Kristi MacDonald, and Kevin Solar for their assistance with data entry. We would also like to thank Dr. Lesley Graff for her helpful suggestions, and Drs. Tracie Afifi and Leslie E. Roos for their mentorship. Finally, thank you to Drs. Alexandra Livesey and Raja Mukherjee for sharing the BRIEF caregiver rating data from the Mohamed et al. (2019) publication.

Funding

This study was funded by the Office of the VP (Research & International), University of Manitoba; the Department of Clinical Health Psychology, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba; and the Department of Pediatrics & Child Health, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Health Psychology, University of Manitoba, 1155 Notre Dame Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 3G1, Canada

    Kristene Cheung

  2. The Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba (CHRIM), 715 McDermot Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 3P4, Canada

    Kristene Cheung

  3. Janeway Family Centre, Dr. L.A. Miller Centre, Eastern Health, 100 Forest Road, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, A1E 1E5, Canada

    Susan Doyle

  4. Department of Clinical Health Psychology, University of Manitoba, 771 Bannatyne Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 3N4, Canada

    Kylee Clayton & Nicole M. Taylor

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  1. Kristene Cheung
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  2. Susan Doyle
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  3. Kylee Clayton
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  4. Nicole M. Taylor
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Kristene Cheung, Susan Doyle, and Nicole Taylor. Data analysis planning and interpretation of results were performed by Kristene Cheung, Susan Doyle, and Kylee Clayton. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Kristene Cheung, Susan Doyle, and Kylee Clayton, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Funding was obtained by Kristene Cheung.

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Correspondence to Kristene Cheung.

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This research was approved by The University of Manitoba Research Ethics Boards and the Specialized Services for Children and Youth (SSCY) Research and Evaluation Committee.

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Cheung, K., Doyle, S., Clayton, K. et al. The Association Between Performance-Based Measures and Caregiver Ratings of Executive Functioning Among Children with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure. J Pediatr Neuropsychol 8, 32–44 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40817-021-00115-9

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