9. Executive Functions Flashcards
What are of the brain is most concerned with executive functions?
prefrontal cortex
What are executive functions?
- basic cognitive processes that underpin complex, goal oriented behaviour
What sort of tasks use executive functions?
- learning a new skill
- carrying out a complex task
- doing something difficult
When are EFs used?
specific situations:
- non-routine/novel situations
- when autopilot won’t suffice
- they help complement our automatic cognitive processes
What is a domain-specific process?
- can be used in many different contexts
What are the three types of executive function?
- working memory
- inhibition
- cognitive flexibility
What is working memory?
- most basic EF
helps us…. - store temporary info
- manipulate info
- maintain and update our task goals
- remember the order to do a task in
What is inhibitory control?
- EF responsible for stopping an ongoing or habitual response
- helps to produce goal-appropriate behaviour
When is inhibitory control often required?
- when trying to overcome habits we are trying to change
- e.g not having a cigarette first thing
What is cognitive flexibility?
- ability to change and update goal-oriented behaviour in response to changes in our goals/environment
What are the principles of a stroop task?
- we automatically read
- naming a colour is less practiced, therefore a slower process
- to make a correct response, the incorrect response must be inhibited
When can EF impairments exist?
- conditions in adults e.g depression, Sz
- during development: ADHD, autism etc
What does evidence show for EFs and cognitive development?
- infants have some basic EF abilities (A not B task: inhibited incorrect response)
- hard to conclusively measure intentional behaviour until about 3
What are the two parts of working memory?
- storage
- manipulation
What tasks are used to measure storage and manipulation (working memory) in infants?
storage: repeat back the following letters
manipulation: repeat back the following letters in reverse order
What happens when children have poor working memory?
- can struggle to cope with structured activities
- when WM becomes overloaded, the info given to guide the task gets lost
- children then guess/abandon task
Why are stroop-like tasks not appropriate in children?
How has this been devised?
- for many children reading is not automatic
age appropriate:
- day/night
- grass/snow
- bear/dragon
What happens when children have poor inhibitory control?
- makes it hard to think before we act, so we often act on impulse
What is the classic measure of cognitive flexibility in children?
dimension change card sort task (DCCS)
What is the DCCS?
- children see two target cards and must match the other cards to them
initial rule = sort by dimension
- when asked to switch rules, they fail to do so and use the old rule (perseverate)
Why does combining EFs lead to difficulties?
- difficult to co-ordinate functions and prioritise a different goal
What has been found between EFs and literacy?
- 4 year olds with better working memory understand more complex sentences
What has been found between EFs and maths?
- maths is complex and involves coordinating many different processes e.g keeping track of info
- working memory and inhibitory control are both associated with better maths performance
What has been found between EFs and reasoning?
- executive functions also play a role in different kinds of reasoning e.g counterfactual, mental-state and symbolic
