The Executive Functions of the brain are responsible for coordinating almost all of our interactions with the outside world. When you stop and think about it, it’s pretty amazing. We take in sensory information through our eyes and ears, and if our frontal lobes are working optimally, we STOP AND THINK before we act. In a split second we analyze the current situation and what it demands, drawing on memories of past experiences and considering possible future consequences. Then our “Mission Control” center of the brain guides us in how to respond to the situation at hand.
We make sure we PAY ATTENTION to the right things for the right amount of time – sustaining our efforts even on dull, tedious tasks for as long as needed to complete our goals. Yet we’re able to easily SHIFT GEARS and transition to something else if that’s required. Our WORKING MEMORY helps us keep track of what we’re doing while we’re doing it, and we can SELF-MONITOR how we’re doing as we go along, making any needed course corrections to stay on track. We ORGANIZE our time and space and materials so that our efforts are efficient and productive. We INHIBIT any IMPULSES to just act on whim, and we CONTROL our EMOTIONS, so that these things don’t lead us into temptation or trouble.
In short, we’re able to use our internal control mechanisms (the EF part of the brain) to regulate our behaviors so we can attain the outcomes we desire – whether it’s good grades in school, good plays on the ball field, or good family and peer relationships.
Except for when we can’t.
Some kids (and adults, of course), have a type of organizational blindness, or as Dr. Russell Barkley is fond of saying, “temporal nearsightedness.” These kids, with EF deficits, can only see or relate to those things near in time to them. They are too often driven by their immediate needs, and have difficulty delaying gratification, seeing the big picture, or working in an organized way towards a long-term goal. They aren’t as readily motivated by those far-off rewards that drive much of our daily behaviors (“study now to get good grades to get into a good college to get a good job to live happily ever after…”). The one thing their daily lives are marked by is their consistent inconsistency!
Kids with EF deficits struggle with mental control panels that go offline at the darnedest times – like during the morning rush to get out of the house, or when it’s time to work on a big school project or when they need to follow through on multiple directions or keep up with their chores or keep their mouths shut when someone else is talking.
Executive Functioning involves an intricate set of control mechanisms that most of us take for granted to get through our busy days successfully. Yet it is important for a whole host of struggling kids (with or without such labels as ADHD, ODD, OCD, Bipolar, Asperger’s, Tourette’s, etc.) that we don’t take these skills for granted. We need to stop and accurately assess their EF profiles.
Only when we really know what a child’s specific strengths and weaknesses are, can we empower that child, along with his or her parents and teachers, to adapt and thrive.
It’s critical to gain a careful and compassionate understanding of how a child is able to function most successfully – at home, school, and life. Under what circumstances is the child able to use which internal skills and external resources to succeed? When and how does the child do his best work; when and how does he perform most poorly?
With a realistic appraisal of a child’s EF profile, we can target skills, supports, and interventions that will have a maximum impact on improving that child’s quality of life. And providing relief for his family. And for his teachers and classmates. It’s a win-win-win situation!
Look for more information on what the “Top 10 Executive Functions” are and “How to Assess Your Child’s EF Profile” on my blog site in the coming week.
And look for my upcoming webinar series on “How to Improve Executive Functioning for Any Child.”
Comments on this entry are closed.