Linking cognitive performance and age prediction with psychological distress in youth

Purpose: Adolescence is a crucial period for the refinement of cognitive functions. During this time, reduced cognitive functioning is often associated with psychological distress. Deviations in cognitive maturation can serve as potential indicators of future psychological challenges. We examined cross-sectional relationships between cognitive performance and self-reported psychological distress among children, adolescents and young adults. We also explored the association between psychological distress and cognitive domain scores. Materials and Methods: Participants (n=699, 9-25 years, 73% females) completed computerized cognitive tests and questionnaires assessing emotional symptoms, anxiety, depression, peer problems, hyperactivity and conduct problems. Using machine learning, we estimated participants' cognitive age, deriving a cognitive age gap (CAG). General additive models (GAMs) assessed associations between age-corrected CAG (cCAG) and symptoms, adjusting for sex, age, and multiple comparisons. Next, we evaluated the link between psychological distress and motor speed, attention span, working memory, executive control of attention, episodic memory and mental and visuo-motor speed.Results: The cognitive age predictor showed moderate accuracy (r=.55, R2=.30, RMSE=2.56, MAE=2.01). Linear models revealed no significant associations between cCAG and psychological distress after multiple comparisons correction. Cognitive domain analysis revealed significant associations between motor speed, emotional symptoms and hyperactivity; attention span and conduct problems; both working memory and episodic memory and anxiety, hyperactivity and conduct problems; mental and visuo-motor speed and hyperactivity and conduct problems.Conclusion: Cognitive age prediction is feasible in youth. While psychological distress was not significantly associated with CAG, several associations with cognitive domain scores were identified, suggesting varying sensitivity to psychological distress across domains.