Emma Strouse
Ph.D. Student in Education, admitted Autumn 2024
Graduate Program Assistant, Domingue Program
All Publications
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Educational attainment polygenic score predicts inhibitory control and academic skills in early and middle childhood
GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR
2021; 20 (7): e12762
Abstract
Inhibitory control skills are important for academic outcomes across childhood, but it is unknown whether inhibitory control is implicated in the association between genetic variation and academic performance. This study examined the relationship between a GWAS-based (EduYears) polygenic score indexing educational attainment (EA PGS) and inhibitory control in early (Mage = 3.80 years) and middle childhood (Mage = 9.18 years), and whether inhibitory control in early childhood mediated the relation between EA PGS and academic skills. The sample comprised 731 low-income and racially/ethnically diverse children and their families from the longitudinal early steps multisite study. EA PGS predicted middle childhood inhibitory control (estimate = 0.09, SE = 0.05, p < 0.05) and academic skills (estimate = 0.18, SE = 0.05, p < 0.01) but did not predict early childhood inhibitory control (estimate = 0.08, SE = 0.05, p = 0.11); thus, mediation was not tested. Sensitivity analyses showed that effect sizes were similar across European and African American groups. This study suggests that inhibitory control could serve as a potential mechanism linking genetic differences to educational outcomes.
View details for DOI 10.1111/gbb.12762
View details for Web of Science ID 000680748100001
View details for PubMedID 34318993
View details for PubMedCentralID PMC8549462
https://orcid.org/0009-0009-7256-858X