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Assessment of preschool-age executive functions: A systematic review
Cristina Silva1,2, Valéria Sousa-Gomes1,2,3, Marisalva Fávero1,3
1Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, University of Maia, Maia, Portugal.
Insights
Evaluating executive functions (EF) in young children is crucial for early intervention. This review found many tasks for specific EF components but no comprehensive tools for children aged 36-72 months.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Executive functions (EF) are critical higher-order cognitive processes originating in the prefrontal cortex.
- Evaluating EF in early childhood is vital for identifying cognitive alterations and enabling timely interventions.
- Understanding EF development in young children is essential for cognitive science and clinical applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review and evaluate instruments and tasks for assessing EF and its components in children aged 36 to 72 months.
- To identify existing measurement tools and assess their suitability for the target age group.
- To highlight gaps in the current assessment landscape for early childhood executive functions.
Main Methods:
- A systematic review methodology was employed.
- Forty-nine studies focusing on EF assessment in children aged 36-72 months were analyzed.
- Tasks and instruments targeting EF components were evaluated for their applicability and validity.
Main Results:
- Multiple tasks exist for assessing individual EF components (e.g., inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility).
- However, a significant lack of comprehensive, validated instruments for measuring global EF in this age group was identified.
- Existing tools often assess components in isolation, limiting a holistic understanding of EF.
Conclusions:
- There is a pressing need for the development and validation of new, global EF assessment tools for children aged 36-72 months.
- Further research into the operational models of executive functioning in early childhood is warranted.
- This review underscores the importance of investing in better measurement instruments to advance the study of early childhood executive functions.
Abstract:
Executive functions (EF) are higher-order cognitive processes present in the prefrontal cortex and are fundamental in planning, executing and monitoring goal-oriented behaviours. Evaluating EF in early stages of child development is essential for identifying any cognitive alterations in young children, given that it allows for early intervention and minimizes future complications. Additionally, it contributes to a better understanding of this construct in this age bracket, as well as its operational model. Study of EF has recently been the focus of multiple researchers; however, there is still a serious lack of instruments and measurements validated towards children's age bracket. This systematic review's main goal is to evaluate instruments and/or tasks that serve to evaluate and analyse EF and/or their components between the ages of 36 and 72 months. Forty-nine studies were analysed, containing multiple tasks and tools oriented towards EF and their constituent components. Results indicate the existence of various tasks that grade the different components independently from one another; nevertheless, they also confirm the lack of any global measurement instrument or method. Therefore, this systematic review presents itself as an important contribution in the study of EF, stressing not only the importance of further investing into constructing and validating new and better tools for evaluating the construct but also the study of operating models of executive functioning, especially in an age bracket where comprehending it is notoriously difficult.
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