Executive functions encompass a suite of control processes—including inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility—that emerge rapidly during the preschool years and underpin children’s ...

Executive function skills are a set of inter-related processes that support attention, self-control, and goal-directed behavior. Executive function has been linked to positive outcomes across multiple ...

Reading involves the skill of decoding written words into meaning. The first step, decoding, is the process of teaching children how to connect symbols with sounds. In layman’s terms, this is ...

Principal Ian Knox’s thoughtful opinion essay, “Kindergartners Are Struggling With Self-Regulation. How Principals Can Respond ” (July 8, 2025), centers on steps school leaders can take to respond ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I cover Mental Wellness for Adolescents and Adults. Executive functioning skills are your child’s mental control center, ...

Executive function—top-down processes by which the human mind controls behavior, regulating thoughts and actions—have long been studied using a standard set of tools, with these assessments being ...

At what age does an adolescent start thinking as an adult? A new study published this week in Nature Communications presents some of the first definitive evidence that executive function - a set of ...

Cognitive skills underlying the ability to plan, switch from task to task and resist tempting distractions usually matures by the time an individual turns 18 years old, a new study says. At what age ...

Is your middle-schooler struggling to remember their homework, stay focused in class, or control their angsty outbursts? They're not alone. According to a Harvard University study , the pandemic ...

Why do some entrepreneurs navigate uncertainty with ease while others struggle? The answer might lie in how their brain's executive function operates. Working with hundreds of business founders, I've ...

Your working memory, cognitive flexibility, and self-regulation are core components of executive function (EF), an interrelated set of mental skills that lay the foundation for advanced cognitive ...