Deficits in Social Problem Solving in Adolescents with Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol

Abstract

This study evaluated the social problem solving skills of adolescents with histories of prenatal alcohol exposure. Adolescents (28 alcohol-exposed, 15 controls) completed a standardized questionnaire of social problem solving, and caregivers completed a parent-report measure of executive functioning. Both questionnaires were mailed to families, and caregivers were asked to recruit a non-exposed control. Results suggest that alcohol-exposed adolescents have substantial impairments in their abilities to solve problems in their everyday life, even in the absence of mental retardation. Such impairments are likely to have a significant impact on social and academic functioning and reflect their need for critical services otherwise unavailable to them.

Keywords:

• Executive functioning
• FASD
• fetal alcohol syndrome
• prenatal alcohol exposure
• social problem solving