The Thinking Brain - Part 4 - The Conductor to your Brain’s Orchestra - Executive Function
What is Executive Function?
Many things we do in our lives are automatic. Things like
However, other things involve our conscious thought.
Imagine you are driving to work. Normally this can largely be done on ‘auto-pilot’. However, if something were to change such as a road closure forcing your re-route, then you would need to override the automatic behaviour and take conscious control.[iii]
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These things that require conscious control are controlled by an area in the frontal lobe of our brain called the pre-frontal cortex using something called ‘executive function’.[iv]
Executive function can be thought of as the brain’s conductor which tells different parts of the brain to perform or be silent and coordinates their activity.[v] Or the CEO who directs the employees of a company.
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What does Executive Function do?
Executive function is vital in helping us
Pay attention,
Switch our focus,
Plan and organise,
Task setting and problem solving,
Make decisions,
Manage time,
Inhibiting habitual patterns and
Remember things in the short-term.[vi]
When our executive function is not up to scratch it can result in,
trouble controlling impulses and emotions,
problems planning and completing tasks,
trouble paying attention or paying attention,
an inability to balance tasks or multi-task,
difficulties problem-solving,
difficulties learning, and
short-term memory issues.[vii]
Task Setting and Problem solving
Executive functions have been linked with intelligence behaviour and a large part of this is when how we are able to set tasks and solve problems.[viii]
One way that we can test this is using the ‘Tower of London’ Test. In this test you there are discs on rods and you are given both an initial start position and an goal end-point. The quicker and more efficiently you can do this, the better you are deemed to perform.[ix]
Overcoming Potent or Habitual Responses
Like the previous example of a closed road forcing your to turn off your auto-pilot and take over control, executive functions helps us overcome a habitual patterns.
One way to see this in action is through something known as the ‘Stroop Test’.
In this test, there are names of colours written in different colours. For example the word ‘blue’ written in red coloured lettering.
You are then asked to say the colour of the ‘ink’ (not what the word says). This means you have to stop yourself reading the word (habit) and force yourself to say the colour of the text.[x]
Try it here:
Task Switching
Another thing executive function helps with is task switching. Like it sounds, this involves switching from one task to another.
One way to look at this is the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Here cards can be sorted by colour, number or shape (think UNO…sort of).
Firstly the you have to match cards. The person running the test will simple say ‘right’ or ‘wrong’.
Eventually, you’ll be able to guess what the rule is (matching colours, shapes or numbers).
Next the rules will change and what was ‘right’ before will be ‘wrong’.
You have to adapt to the new rule.
Our ability to switch tasks is a good indication of our executive function.
Have a look here
https://youtu.be/xFVq0xbjXv4
Conclusion
Executive function is like the CEO of your brain. When things need to be controlled, the prefrontal cortex part of our brain is the one to coordinate and control what happens. We use this for paying attention, switching tasks, planning, problem solving and remembering things in the short term.
[i] Ward, J. (2015). The student's guide to cognitive neuroscience. Psychology Press.
[ii] https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/executive-function
[iii] Ward, J. (2015).
[iv] https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/executive-function
[v] Goldberg (2001) cited in Ward, J. (2015).
[vi] https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/executive-function
[vii] https://www.healthline.com/health/executive-dysfunction
[viii] Ward, J. (2015).
[ix] Ward, J. (2015).
[x] Ward, J. (2015).