Preschoolers’ Intimate Partner Violence Exposure and Their Speeded Control Abilities Eight Years Later: A Longitudinal Mediation Analysis

Abstract

Executive functioning (EF), or a set of related cognitive skills that facilitate goal-oriented behavior, is a critical aspect of adaptive development. Mounting research indicates that exposure to environmental threats during the preschool years jeopardizes EF; however, the extent and mechanisms through which early exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) influences children's EF are unknown. Using data from an eight-year longitudinal investigation of mothers who had experienced IPV and their preschool-aged children (N = 120), this study examined the relative influence of recent and remote IPV exposure on speeded control-a component of EF influenced by processing speed-in late childhood. Results indicated that preschoolers' IPV exposure had a significant negative impact on their speeded control eight years later, and this relation was mediated by the remote effects of IPV on their mothers. Specifically, IPV was positively associated with maternal depression, which in turn contributed to greater use of negative parenting strategies when children were of preschool age. Children's IPV exposure during late childhood was not predictive of their concurrent speeded control. These findings lend further evidence to the notion that the preschool years are a sensitive period for the mastery of EF skills and that IPV exposure is a distinct risk factor that can have protracted effects on children's cognitive development. Further, this study points to modifiable environmental risk factors, which, through targeted prevention and intervention efforts, could promote EF across the lifespan.