Impulsividade e Controle Inibitório em Pré-Adolescentes e Adolescentes Expostos a Violência: Uma Revisão Sistemática

Exposure to violence during development can lead to signifi cant structural and functional changes in the brain. One of the most aff ected regions is the prefrontal cortex, responsible for inhibitory control and impulsivity. This systematic review aimed to identify empirical studies that investigated the eff ects of exposure to violence on inhibitory control and impulsivity in pre-teens and adolescents. This study followed the PRISMA guidelines, using the scientifi c literature indexed on the Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, PsycINFO, and PubMed databases, with no year restriction. The inclusion criteria were: empirical studies, human research including samples with preadolescents and adolescents (10-18 years old); studies involving assessment of impulsivity or inhibitory control in young people exposed to violence. The study was performed by three researchers who acted independently as judges in the blind analysis with a concordance rate of 96%. A total of 13 studies met all inclusion criteria, with 12 assessing inhibitory control and only 1 assessing impulsivity. Associations between exposure to violence throughout childhood and adolescence and defi ciencies in inhibitory control were found in 11 of the 13 studies, with variables involving sexual abuse indicating the most signifi cant associations; and also between exposure to violence and a higher level of impulsivity. Study fi ndings suggest that there is evidence that exposure to violence interferes with the ability to control the impulses of preadolescents and adolescents