Objective To compare the cognitive function of children with behavior problems and normal children. Methods 87 children with behavior problems were choosed as study group,according to Rutter' s Children Behaviour Qestionnaire. And 87 normal children were choosed randomly as normal control. Chinese Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (C-WISC) ,Clinical Memory Scale (CMS) ,Number Cancellation Test (NCT) and the Forth Exceptional Test (FET) were adopted to assess the cognitive function of children in two groups. Results Compared with normal control, arithmetic scale ( ( 10.40 ± 3.02 ) vs ( 12. 13 ± 3.26 ) ), verbal IQ ( ( 121.55 ±12.54) vs ( 129.40 ± 13.98) ), object assembly scale ( ( 9.98 ± 2.79 ) vs ( 11.70 ± 2.78 ) ), performance IQ((97.40±10.84) vs ( 103.93 ±14.22)),full IQ ((112.28±11.14) vs (119.03 ± 12.57)),verbal comprehension IQ ( ( 110.48 ± 11.23 ) vs ( 115.80 ± 12.31 ) ), memory/concentration IQ ( ( 101.25 ± 11.66 ) vs ( 109.40 ± 15.45 ) ),the net scale ( (67.05 ± 33.85 ) vs ( 88.72 ± 22.51 ) ) and error rate( ( 32.27 ± 35.77 ) %vs ( 15.41 ± 10.35 ) % ) were lower in children with behavior problems ( all P ＜ 0.05 ). In study group, the total scale of Rutter' s Children Behaviour Qestionnaire was negatively correlated with memory/concentration IQ, and with net scale(r = - 0. 335, - 0. 367, P ＜ 0.05 );but it was positively correlated with error rate (r = 0. 333, P ＜ 0.05 ). Conclusion Cognitive defects may exist in children with behavior problems.