In day to day life we can complete simple (e.g. brush our teeth, make a cup of tea) or even well-rehearsed complex tasks (e.g. driving) with limited planning, organisation or conscious effort- many of these tasks happen ‘automatically’. But what if we have no toothpaste, the water is off or driving conditions are poor? These tasks are now less routine and require us to think, plan, problem solve, inhibit, etc. These are examples of us using our executive functions.
In general terms the more novel a task, the more complex it is, and when the unpredictable occurs is when our executive functions come into their own. Also they can help us understand the complexities and subtleties involved in social interactions and help us manage stress and emotional responses. When explaining executive functions to patients and relatives sometimes analogies can be useful such as
- The director in charge of a movie
- The conductor of an orchestra
- The manager of a successful football team
- An air traffic control operator
When an individual demonstrates poor executive skills they may be described as having dysexecutive difficulties or dysexecutive syndrome.
Some of the key elements include:
Initiation - independently starting a task or activity.
Self-Monitoring –attending to our behaviours and were necessary adjusting them in line with our future goals.
Inhibition - our ability to control or inhibit more automatic and over-learned responses.
Planning/Organisation – choosing and ordering a series of actions to achieve a desired goal.
Mental Shift/ Flexibility - the ability to switch between demands and activities in response to real world changes.
Emotional Regulation –the ability to control our emotions and respond appropriately and flexibly to a range of emotional situations.
Page last reviewed: 03 Jun 2021
