Cognitive and academic performance of rural Zambian youth exposed to HIV

ABSTRACT

Studies focusing on children affected by HIV have shown that they have generally lower academic performance, however, few studies separate children who are HIV exposed and infected (CHEI) and those who are HIV exposed but uninfected (CHEU). Importantly, in rural sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of studies on CHEI and CHEU examine academic performance indirectly based on cognitive test scores. Therefore, studies assessing the effects of HIV on academic achievement directly for CHEI and CHEU are needed. This article evaluates the effects of HIV-infection on cognitive and academic performance by comparing CHEI (n = 82) and CHEU (n = 1045) aged 7–17 years old using cross-sectional data from an ongoing longitudinal study in a rural area of Zambia. Youth completed cognitive and academic assessments; their height and weight were assessed to generate Body Mass Index (BMI). Caregiver questionnaires provided information on youths’ years in school and household socio-economic status (SES). Results indicated that while HIV infection status did explain some of the variance in performance between CHEI and CHEU, age, BMI, years of schooling and SES accounted for additional variance. The effect of years of schooling on both cognitive and academic performance demonstrated that CHEI’s performance may be greatly improved by consistent school enrollment.

KEYWORDS:

• HIV
• CHEI
• CHEU
• youth
• cognitive
• academic
• OVC

Acknowledgement

We would like to acknowledge the contributions of all of the children and families who participated in this research. We appreciate their time and support over the years. This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, NICHD R01HD085836 (PI: Elena L. Grigorenko). Grantees undertaking such projects are encouraged to express freely their professional judgment. This article, therefore, does not necessarily reflect the position or policies of the funders, and no official endorsement should be inferred.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [Grant number R01HD085836]: A community-based evaluation of interventions for orphans and vulnerable children.