High Levels Of Internalizing Symptomology In Early Childhood And Their Relation To Error Monitoring In Middle Childhood

Abstract

While extensive research has been conducted on the relationship between anxiety disorders and executive function, little is known about the association between internalizing symptoms and executive functioning in childhood, and even less is known about the effect of early internalizing symptoms on early and later error monitoring (ERN), a specific facet of executive functioning. The present study utilized EEG to examine whether children with high levels of internalizing symptoms at age 4 would evidence larger ERN amplitudes to error commission relative to children with low levels of internalizing symptoms. Participants included 22 high-risk children who completed the Erikson Flanker Task while EEG data were recorded. Early childhood internalizing symptoms were assessed via parent report on the CBCL. Linear regression analyses revealed no association between internalizing symptoms at age 4 and ERN amplitude at age 8. Results suggest that, in the present sample, internalizing at age 4 was unrelated to error monitoring at age 8.