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. 2016 Feb 16;11(2):e0141954.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0141954. eCollection 2016.

Exposure to Pre- and Perinatal Risk Factors Partially Explains Mean Differences in Self-Regulation between Races

J C Barnes  1 , Brian B Boutwell  2   3 , J Mitchell Miller  4 , Rashaan A DeShay  5 , Kevin M Beaver  6 , Norman White  2
Affiliations

Exposure to Pre- and Perinatal Risk Factors Partially Explains Mean Differences in Self-Regulation between Races

J C Barnes et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Objectives: To examine whether differential exposure to pre- and perinatal risk factors explained differences in levels of self-regulation between children of different races (White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Other).

Methods: Multiple regression models based on data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort (n ≈ 9,850) were used to analyze the impact of pre- and perinatal risk factors on the development of self-regulation at age 2 years.

Results: Racial differences in levels of self-regulation were observed. Racial differences were also observed for 9 of the 12 pre-/perinatal risk factors. Multiple regression analyses revealed that a portion of the racial differences in self-regulation was explained by differential exposure to several of the pre-/perinatal risk factors. Specifically, maternal age at childbirth, gestational timing, and the family's socioeconomic status were significantly related to the child's level of self-regulation. These factors accounted for a statistically significant portion of the racial differences observed in self-regulation.

Conclusions: The findings indicate racial differences in self-regulation may be, at least partially, explained by racial differences in exposure to pre- and perinatal risk factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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