Comparison of Executive Functions in Preterm and Normal Children

Introduction: Executive functions refer to the use of cognitive processes to control thoughts and emotions. The purpose of this study was to compare the executive functions in premature and normal children. Methods: The present study is a causal comparative study. The statistical population of this study was Tabriz Premature Children that 30 of these children were selected by using available sampling and compared with 30 normal children. Participants responded to the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Functions (BRIEF). Data were analyzed using analysis of multivariate variance. Results: The results showed that there is a significant difference between the mean components of vulnerability (inhibition, shift of attention, emotional control, initiation, work memory, organization) and total score of executive functions. Conclusions: Preterm children have weakness in terms of executive functions than normal children that the cause of this problem is the greater vulnerability of the central nervous system due to the early birth and educational problems of these children.