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A Developmental Pathway from Early Inhibitory Control to Social Connectedness

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Abstract

Social connections are critical for mental and physical health; however, the developmental pathways to children’s social connectedness outcomes are not well understood. This study examined the pathways from children’s inhibitory control at 4 years to two social connectedness outcomes – loneliness and friendship quality at age 10 – through behavioral problems at age 7. As part of a longitudinal study (N = 291, 54% girls), children’s inhibitory control was assessed via a Go/No-Go task when children were 4 years old. Mothers reported on children’s behavioral problems at ages 4 and 7 years. Children reported on their friendship quality and loneliness at ages 7 and 10 years. Greater inhibitory control at 4 years predicted lower behavioral problems at 7 years, which in turn predicted better friendship quality and lower loneliness at 10 years. Indirect effects from inhibitory control at 4 years to loneliness and friendship quality at 10 years via behavioral problems at 7 years were significant. Findings suggest that inhibitory control in early childhood may play a key role for the development of social connectedness in middle childhood via its impact on children’s behavioral problems.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the participating families without whom this study would not have been possible. The authors also thank the research assistants who have collected the data presented in this manuscript.

Funding

This research was supported by National Institutes of Health grants, MH093349 and HD017899, granted to Nathan Fox and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) grant F32-MH127869 awarded to Selin Zeytinoglu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, 4716 Pontiac St., Suite 2104, College Park, MD, USA

    Selin Zeytinoglu & Nathan A. Fox

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Santiago Morales

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada

    Heather A. Henderson

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  1. Selin Zeytinoglu
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  2. Santiago Morales
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  3. Heather A. Henderson
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  4. Nathan A. Fox
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Correspondence to Selin Zeytinoglu.

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All procedures used were approved by the University of Maryland’s Institutional Review Board. All participant data were deidentified.

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Informed consent were obtained from the primary caregivers before data collection at each assessment and children’s assent were obtained for each study opportunity.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Drs. Zeytinoglu, Morales, Henderson and Fox report no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interests. Dr. Zeytinoglu is currently funded by a NIMH fellowship grant. Dr. Henderson receives research funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Fox has received grant support from the NIMH, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes consortium, the Russell Sage Foundation, and the Lumos Foundation. He has received royalties from Guilford Press and Harvard University Press. He has received honoraria for lectures to professional audiences.

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Zeytinoglu, S., Morales, S., Henderson, H.A. et al. A Developmental Pathway from Early Inhibitory Control to Social Connectedness. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 51, 805–817 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-023-01023-6

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