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Pronounced developmental progression during the transition to formal schooling can be found in executive functions (EF) and metacognition (MC). However, it is still unclear whether and how EF and MC influence each other during this transition. Previous research with young children suggests that inhibition may be a prerequisite for monitoring skills. Thus, the present longitudinal study investigated the association between the common subcomponents of EF (inhibition, working memory, and shifting) assessed in kindergarten (T1) and metacognitive monitoring assessed in 2nd grade (T2) in a sample of N = 84 children. In line with our hypothesis, the results revealed a significant link only between the EF subcomponent inhibition and later metacognitive monitoring. More precisely, children with better inhibition skills in kindergarten showed less overconfident monitoring in elementary school. Interestingly, the longitudinal relationship between inhibition and monitoring was not bidirectional. The findings indicate an essential role of early inhibition skills regarding emerging and developing elementary school children’s monitoring skills.

Previous research has shown that executive functions (EF) and task persistence are important predictors of academic achievement. Surprisingly, EF and persistence have rarely been studied together. It thus remains unclear whether these two constructs contribute independently to academic development. The current study aimed to investigate the specific contributions of task persistence and EF on later academic achievement. In a sample of N = 88 (51% female), we assessed at T1 children's EF skills and their task persistence (mean age T1: 73.4 months old). At T2, teachers rated children's math and reading competence (mean age T2: 94.6 months old). Results revealed that EF and persistence significantly predicted math achievement in second grade. However, persistence in kindergarten did not predict second-grade reading beyond the effect of EF. The findings indicate that task persistence plays a significant role in later math achievement, possibly reflecting the ability to endure and sustain that is not captured through classical EF measures.

Most research approaches operationalize persistence through a static index, neglecting that persistence is inherently dynamic. The study aimed to analyze persistence as a dynamic process through a real-time modeling approach. More specifically, we computed a latent profile analysis to examine different temporal and behavior dynamics in a persistence task. The Swiss sample consisted of N = 241 children (Mage = 71.8 months, 52.3% female, 21% migration background). During a persistence task, task engagement was repeatedly coded in 10s intervals yielding 18 indicators of persistence. The results revealed three behavioral profiles: a highly persistent profile (70%), a declining persistence profile (19%), and a low persistence profile (11%). Furthermore, covariate analyses revealed profile differences in terms of executive functions and behavioral problems.

Research Findings: The goal of this longitudinal study was to examine persistence development during the transition to school. The sample consisted of N = 88 children from Caucasian, middle-class families (51% female). Participants were recruited through advertisement in public kindergartens and were tested twice, in kindergarten (mean age = 73.4 months) and second grade (mean age = 94.6 months). We computed latent profile analyses to examine different behavioral approaches during a persistence task. Furthermore, we analyzed change and stability in these task approaches during the transition from kindergarten to elementary school. Analyses revealed three different latent profiles for both measurement points: a persistent profile, a mixed profile, and an engaged-disengaged profile. Most children were best described by the persistent profile, which was also the most stable profile over time (stability rate: .74). A less persistent task approach characterized children in the mixed profile and engaged-disengaged profile. Covariate analyses revealed differences between the latent profiles in terms of cognitive flexibility (��2 = .102) and in terms of learning-related behavior (��2 = .085). Practice or Policy: The results indicate that persistence difficulties can be found in two different task approaches. Consequently, we argue that these children need different types of assistance to address their persistence difficulties. Overall, the findings offer new possibilities to develop suitable intervention programs to support the ability to persist in the face of a challenge.

Abstract. Repeatedly, the notion has been put forward that metacognition (MC) and executive functions (EF) share common grounds, as both describe higher order cognitive processes and involve monitoring. However, only few studies addressed this issue empirically and so far their findings are rather inconsistent. Addressing the question whether measurement differences may in part be responsible for the mixed results, the current study included explicitly reported as well as time-based measures of metacognitive monitoring and related them to EF. A total of 202 children aged 4–6 years were assessed in terms of EF (inhibition, working memory, shifting) and monitoring. While there was no significant link between explicitly reported confidence and EF, latencies of monitoring judgments were significantly related to time- and accuracy-based measures of EF. Our findings support the association between EF and MC and the assumption that better inhibition abilities help children to engage in more thorough monitoring.

Temperamental effortful control (EC) and executive functions (EF) are two frameworks for studying self-regulation in children. Despite stemming from different research traditions, they show many conceptual and theoretical similarities and their corresponding tasks are often used interchangeably. However, little is known about how and whether the two constructs can be distinguished empirically. The present study aimed to contribute to the investigation of this issue. A sample of 230 preschool children aged 4–6 years were tested with two common behavioral EC tasks and an EC questionnaire. Furthermore, the assessment included common measures of the three subcomponents of EF, namely inhibition, working memory, and shifting. Data were analyzed using correlational and confirmatory factor analyses. In accordance with our hypotheses, we found significant positive correlations between most EC and EF measures, and a single factor model, in which all EC and EF tasks loaded significantly on the underlying factor, was supported by our results. Moreover, this latent construct generalized across gender and age. These findings show that the variety of common EC and EF tasks used in this study all seem to tap similar aspects of self-regulation and therefore support an integrated model of self-regulation encompassing EC and EF. Our results are further considered to be informative for future research using different EC and EF tasks.

The aim of the study was to examine whether cognitive skills are related to persistence. Thus, children's (N = 157, mean age: 5.9 years) persistent and non-persistent behaviours (i.e., cheating and off-task) were assessed in an unsolvable task. Additionally, we assessed children's executive functions and temperament. Analysis for persistence showed that cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility predicted children's persistent behaviour, beyond age and temperament. Analyses for non-persistent behaviours revealed that temperament and weak executive functions predicted cheating, while age predicted off-task behaviour. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? So far, persistence has been conceptualized as a temperamental sub-dimension of self-regulation. What does this study add? A child's persistence depends not only on temperament but also on cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility. There are qualitative differences between the two non-persistent behaviours cheating and off-task. While cheating is related to weaker cognitive skills, off-task behaviour seems mainly age-related.

In the past decade, research increasingly uncovers emerging metacognitive skills in young children by using child-friendly, creative, and non-verbal measures of metacognition. In the present study, the now often used non-verbal “opt-out” paradigm and classical verbal metacognitive judgments (judgments-of-learning and confidence judgments) were used in the context of a paired associates learning task. Prospectively (before the memory test) and retrospectively (after recognition) N = 138 children (N = 72 5-year-olds; N = 66 6-year-olds) evaluated their performance. Results revealed evidence for existing metacognitive skills in their relative sense (discriminating correct from incorrect responses in the metacognitive measures) but poor metacognitive accuracy in absolute terms. The non-verbal opt-out measures were not found to consistently and substantially facilitate especially 5-year-olds` metacognitive skills. Correlating non-verbal and verbal measures revealed shared but also distinct, yet to be explained variances calling for a strongly differentiated concept of children’s early metacognition.