A List of Executive Functions
Developed by Drs. Gioia, Isquith, Guy and Kenworthy
- Inhibition-The ability to stop one’s own behavior at the appropriate time, including stopping actions and thoughts. The flip side of inhibition is impulsivity; if you have weak ability to stoop yourself from acting on your impulses, then you are "impulsive".
- Shift-The ability to move freely from one situation to an-other and to think flexibly in order to respond appropriately to the situation.
- Emotional Control-The ability 10 modulate emotional responses by bringing rational thought to bear on feelings.
- Initiation-The ability to begin a task or activity and to independently generate ideas, responses, or problem-solving strategies.
- Working Memory-The capacity to hold information in mind for the purpose of completing a task.
- Planning/Organization-The ability to manage current and future-oriented task demands.
- Organization of Materials-The ability to impose order on work, play, and storage spaces.
- Self-Monitoring-The ability to monitor one’s own performance and to measure it against some standard of what is needed or expected.