Effects of childhood institutionalization on semantic processing and N400 ERPs persist into adulthood

• In Event: Conditions of social vulnerability and language development

Abstract

Institutionalized rearing is associated with cognitive, social-emotional, neural, and language deficits (Chisholm, 1998; Hodges & Tizard, 1989). Although effects of institutional care (IC) on language have been examined in behavioral (e.g., Loman, Wiik, Frenn, Pollak, & Gunnar, 2009) and ERP studies (Kornilov et al., 2019; Zhukova et al., 2020), how IC affects accuracy versus efficiency of semantic processing remains unclear. We examined behavior and ERPs during a semantic processing task involving picture-word conflict in adolescents and adults raised under institutional care (IC; N = 187) or biological family care (BFC; N = 267). We hypothesized that we would see group differences in left-lateralized ERPs associated with semantic processing.

Method
We recorded EEG using a 64-electrode cap during a сross-modal picture-word task based on Desroaches et al. (2009). Participants saw a picture of a noun and then heard five words, one-by-one, that could match the picture (congruent-target condition), be non-matching but related to the picture (incongruent-related condition), or be unrelated to the picture (incongruent-unrelated condition). We instructed participants to press one of two buttons to indicate picture-word congruency or incongruency. The nouns could also be high or low frequency in the Russian language. Participants completed the Cultural Fair Intelligence Test (CFIT; Cattell & Cattell, 1973) and the ARFA-RUS synonyms subscale (Logvinenko et al., 2020).

Results
Behavior. The IC group had significantly lower IQ than the BFC group (ANOVA F(1, 450) = 134.04, p < 0.001; IC Mean = 92.97; BFC Mean = 105.97). Controlling for IQ, a history of IC was associated with worse ARFA-RUS synonym identification (F(1) = 88.83, p < .001; Figure 1a) and lower accuracy on the picture-word task (GLMM X2(1) = 9.9, p < .01). The Group (BFC vs. IC) x Condition (target, related, unrelated) interaction on accuracy was statistically significant (X2(1) = 8.58, p < .05; Figure 1b). The largest group disparity occurred in the related condition (t = 4.69, p <. 001) -- the condition that introduces the most cognitive interference between the picture and auditory word meaning. We found no group differences in response latency.

ERPs. Mirroring behavioral results, over a left-lateralized parietal area, we did not find effects of group on ERP peak latencies. Controlling for IQ, we found a Group x Condition interaction on ERP amplitude in a 310-410 ms time window approximately corresponding to the N400 (X2(2) = 8.81, p < .05; Figure 2) and a 410-550 ms window (X2(2) = 9.35, p < .01), such that the IC group had a larger effect of picture-word congruency.

Conclusions
This study found that effects of childhood institutional care on semantic processing persist into adolescence and adulthood. Accuracy of semantic processing was more vulnerable to effects of IC than processing speed, pointing to a potential speed-accuracy tradeoff. Effects of IC were most apparent on incongruent trials, suggesting difficulty with semantic processing during conflict. Analyses are ongoing and will include effects of word frequency and additional electrodes. Together, the results support evidence that directs policy makers to move away from institutionalized care.

Authors

• Lisa K. Chinn, University of Houston
  Presenting Author

• Anastasia A. Sukmanova
  Non-Presenting Author

• Darya A. Momotenko
  Non-Presenting Author

• Irina V. Ovchinnikova, University of Houston
  Non-Presenting Author

• Elena L Grigorenko, University of Houston
  Non-Presenting Author