| Abstract [eng] |
Executive functions develop most rapidly in preschool age and are linked to school readiness and later development. Everyday activities and extracurricular classes – chosen differently by boys and girls – are thought to contribute to this development, yet research remains inconsistent. This study compared preschool-aged boys' and girls' executive functioning and evaluated its associations with their extracurricular and leisure activities. In a cross-sectional correlational analysis, 100 children aged 4–5 (56% girls) from one Vilnius kindergarten were assessed with the Shape School, Missing Scan, and Head-Toes tasks; extracurricular participation and leisure activities were assessed via a parent-report survey. Executive function scores did not differ by sex, although girls more often drew and did puzzles, while boys engaged in more construction play. Activities were largely unrelated to executive function scores, except for a positive association between reading and verbal inhibition and a negative one between participation in sports extracuricullars and motor inhibition. The findings temper expectations that extracurricular classes or leisure activities can reliably foster executive function development. |
