Associations between socioeconomic status, response inhibition, and state and trait anxiety in Chinese adolescents

Abstract

Response inhibition ability is assumed to play a vital role in many behavioral and health outcomes. Research on identifying correlates of response inhibition might inform theoretical considerations on causes and effects of this ability, and ultimately interventions. This study focused on two such correlates, for which there is a lack of research and/or mixed findings: childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and state and trait anxiety. A sample of 463 Chinese high school students, aged 14–18 years, filled in questionnaires on childhood SES and trait and state anxiety, and performed a go/no-go response inhibition task. Significant positive associations were found between SES and various measures of response inhibition ability. Moreover, SES was negatively associated with both types of anxiety, which were negatively associated with indices of response inhibition ability. Also based on exploratory ad-hoc mediation and modulation analyses, these associations were discussed in terms of possible causal relations among the variables.