Executive functions as mediators of early educational disparities by SES, gender and birth month

Educational inequalities emerge early, yet the combined influence of socioeconomic status (SES), gender, and birth month remains understudied in preschool. While SES-related disparities have been linked to executive functions (EFs)-cognitive processes supporting goal-directed behavior-their role in gender- and birth-month-related inequalities is unknown. In a sample of 2,618 preschoolers (mean age = 42.61 months, SD = 3.41; girls/boys = 1254/1364), SES, gender, and birth month each independently predicted pre-academic abilities. EFs significantly mediated these associations, explaining 23% of SES-related disparities, 39% of gender-related disparities, and 51% of birth-month-related disparities. These findings provide novel evidence that early educational inequalities may partly originate from EF differences, underscoring their central role in shaping school readiness.