Cardiac vagal control and children's adaptive functioning: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Polyvagal theory has influenced research on the role of cardiac vagal control, indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia withdrawal (RSA-W) during challenging states, in children's self-regulation. However, it remains unclear how well RSA-W predicts adaptive functioning (AF) outcomes and whether certain caveats of measuring RSA (e.g., respiration) significantly impact these associations. A meta-analysis of 44 studies (n=4996 children) revealed small effect sizes such that greater levels of RSA-W were related to fewer externalizing, internalizing, and cognitive/academic problems. In contrast, RSA-W was differentially related to children's social problems according to sample type (community vs. clinical/at-risk). The relations between RSA-W and children's AF outcomes were stronger among studies that co-varied baseline RSA and in Caucasian children (no effect was found for respiration). Children from clinical/at-risk samples displayed lower levels of baseline RSA and RSA-W compared to children from community samples. Theoretical/practical implications for the study of cardiac vagal control are discussed.

Keywords: Adaptive functioning; Cardiac vagal tone; Children, Meta-analysis; RSA withdrawal.

Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Figures

Figure 1

Summary of Moderation Analyses for RSA Measurement Variables. Note. * p F (1, 21) = 2.62, p = .078.

Figure 2

Summary of Moderation Analyses for Sample Type Note. + p