Inhibition:The ability to stop one’s own
behavior at an appropriate time.
Example: Children who cannot stop
talking or moving and cannot “look before they leap” display an inability
to inhibit their behavior.
Emotional Control: The ability to modulate emotional
responses.
Example: Children who cry easily,
laugh hysterically, are unable to exert emotional control and have temper
tantrums.
Initiate: The ability to begin a task, generate ideas, or
problem-solve.
Example: Kids who have problems starting
homework or chores and need extensive prompts to continue working lack the
skill to initiate.
Working Memory: The ability to remember things for
immediate use: phone numbers, directions.
Example: Children who lose track of what
they’re doing, forget what they’re supposed to get when sent on an errand,
can’t remember rules, and struggle with mental manipulation exhibit
deficits in working memory.
Planning and Organizing: The ability to manage current or
future tasks by setting goals and developing appropriate steps . ahead of time
Example: Students who have trouble
starting large assignments in a timely fashion, don’t have the right
materials, and underestimate the time needed to finish the task are
struggling with planning and organization.
Organization of materials:The ability to organize work, play and storage spaces
Example: Children who don’t have
belongings ready or available for use, have messy closets, and leave a
trail of belongings have difficulty organizing materials.
Monitoring: The ability to check one’s own work.
Example: Students who rush through work,
make mistakes, and fail to check their work display poor ability to
monitor their efforts.
Shifting: The ability to "shift
gears" easily for a new task.
Example: Children who can't handle more
than one task in succession, or who can't stop one activity when it's time
to start another, display difficulty with shifting.
From
the BRIEF, Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning (PAR,
Inc., 2000)
Difficulties with Executive Function have been associated with conditions
including: ADHD, Tourette’s Syndrome, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Traumatic
Brain Injury, Depression, Learning Disabilities, and Autism Spectrum Disorders
(Bradshaw, 2001).