Tarefas neuropsicológicas de crianças e adolescentes em situação de vulnerabilidade socioeconômica com e sem queixas de mau desempenho acadêmico durante a pandemia da COVID-19

Abstract

This study is an integral part of a research project named “Horseback riding for young people: Contributions to biopsychosocial development”. It was conducted at the ANDE-BRASIL. Socioeconomically vulnerable children and adolescents may have impaired cognitive development due to absent or insufficient financial, cultural, and social resources because of the context to which they belong. Therefore, understanding the cognitive skill condition in this public is a scientific advancement (as there remains a gap in the knowledge on this topic) with social and educational impact (as it has consequences to school life). Objective: To analyze neuropsychological task performance of socioeconomically vulnerable children and adolescents with and without poor academic achievements during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: This is an observational analytical cross-sectional study with a convenience sample comprising 100 individuals aged 7 to 17 years. The collection took place from July 2020 to January 2021. Also, the NEUPSILIN or NEUPSILIN-Inf – depending on the participant’s age – was used for neuropsychological assessment. The results were submitted to association and descriptive statistical analyses. Pearson chi-square or Fisher exact tests and Mann-Whitney test were used in univariate analysis, while Poisson regression model was used in multivariate analysis. Statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: The data of 84 subjects were included, whereas 16 withdrew from the research. The mean age of the total sample was 10.89 (±2.6) years, with similar distribution between the sexes. Of these, 42.9% had poor academic achievement, most of them among the children. The groups with poor (PAA) and good academic achievements (GAA) were compared, and the cognitive skills were analyzed. Statistical differences were found in the following variables: Immediate evocation; Total arithmetic skills; Inference processing; Total oral language; Copied writing; Rhyming; Syllable reading; Word reading; Pseudoword reading; Word and pseudoword writing; and Orthographic verbal fluency. Statistical differences were found in Total arithmetic skills and Total oral language in the multivariate analysis. Individuals with poor results in the Arithmetic skills subtest were 31.9% more likely to have poor academic performance, while those with poor results in the Oral language subtest were 30.20% more likely to have poor academic performance. There was no statistical difference between poor academic performance and age. Final considerations: The participants with poor academic performance had worse results in Arithmetic skills and Oral and written language subtests. This study discussed the correlations between cognitive skills and their academic impact on the study population and the clinical and educational consequences. The results can help direct clinical interventions and develop educational, social, and public policy projects to minimize the negative impacts of socioeconomic vulnerability and social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic.