The relationship between socioeconomic status and neuropsychological performance in 7-10 year-old South African children

Socioeconomic status (SES) plays a significant role in neuropsychological performance, with several empirical research studies reporting that low-SES children score more poorly on cognitive tasks than do high-SES children, even when IQ is statistically controlled. However, cognitive ability is not depressed across the board among low-SES children. Rather, abilities have been linked to specific neurocognitive systems. However, in South Africa there is a lack of local research focusing specifically on the link between SES and children's neuropsychological performance. The aim of the current study, therefore, was to investigate the relationship between SES and neuropsychological performance in a sample of South African children (divided into three SES-based groups) between the ages of 7- and 10-years old, with specific focus on the domains of attention, memory, and executive functioning. In addition, I aimed to provide preliminary normative data, stratified by age and SES, for the test battery used in this study.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Department of Psychology

Year dc:date.issued

2011

Author dc:creator

• Schoeman, Fransien

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Thomas, Kevin G F

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/12655

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/12655