Executive Function and Self-Regulation

According to Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child:


1.) Executive functioning is referred to as the "air traffic control mechanism of the brain," because it helps us to:

• Filter out distractions in order to plan, prioritize tasks, set and achieve goals
• Focus attention on multiple streams of information at the same time
• Switch gears when needed and revise plans as necessary

We have to be able to work effectively with others, amid distractions and multiple demands. Mastering these skills helps children grow up and contribute to society. Without having executive functioning, children might be able to list rules for behavior, but not put them into practice.

2.) Executive function and self-regulation skills depend on three types of brain function:

1. Working memory: Governs our ability to retain and manipulate distinct pieces of information over short periods of time. For example: After sharing an item and getting it back again, a child has to remember what they were doing with that item in the first place.
2. Inhibitory-control: Enables us to set priorities and resist impulsive actions or responses (also called self control). For example: To share, a child has to be able to stop what they are doing and give the other child a turn.
3. Mental flexibility: Helps us to sustain or shift attention in response to different demands or to apply different rules in different settings. For example: If a child shares a toy, and the other child does something unpredictable, you have to be able to adjust what you are going to do next. 

3.) Children aren't born with these skills, and need outside support to develop them. This is especially true if a child grows up in an environment of toxic stress, neglect, abuse or violence.

• Children who are struggling in these capacities often look like they either aren't paying attention or are deliberately not controlling themselves. 
• The risk is that a child who doesn't have this skill set might "act out," be put in a "time out," miss out on learning and fall further behind. 
• Which then makes the child upset and even more likely to struggle in the future (downward spiral)

4.) Way to help children build these skills include:

• Scaffolding helps children practice necessary skills before they must perform them alone (similar to going to the gym, practicing these skills helps to develop them)
• Adults can create an environment to help by establishing routines, modeling social behavior, and creating and maintaining supportive, reliable relationships
• Children can exercise their developing skills  through creative play, social interaction, stress management, and self-direction

5.) Self-regulation includes both intentional and automatic brain processes to help us draw upon the right skills at the right time, manage our responses to the world, and resist inappropriate responses:

• Automatic self-regulation is an rapid, impulse-directed response  that is needed for urgent or threatening situations (often referred to as the fight or flight response)
• Intentional self-regulation is a conscious, deliberate, thoughtful and proactive response needed for achieving goals. 

Additional quote:

• "We know that early childhood is a critical time for the brain, when connections are being made that become the foundation for a child’s future health, learning, and behavior. Adolescence is also a vital “window of opportunity” for building core life skills—and for practitioners to provide support." 
• "Slowly but surely, you're going to step back, and that child is going to go into the world with these skills."