executive function and higher order thinking

executive function

a set of abilities that allow us to plan actions to reach a goal, to use information flexibly, to think abstractly, and to make inferences

also called cognitive control - processes that enable guiding or controlling one’s thoughts and actions

contention scheduling

a cognitive system that enables automatic processing that has been learned over time

supervisory attentional system

a cognitive system required to effortfully direct attention and guide action through decision processes

environmental dependency syndrome

caused by frontal lobe damage, behavior can sometimes be triggered by stimuli in the environment

lowest level

degree of control in a hierarchical manner - sensory information and simple tasks are processed by posterior regions automatically with little daily variation

highest level

degree of control in a hierarchical manner - involves self reflection and metacognition, supported by frontal lobes

self reflection

an individual to have self awareness and to understand the relationship of the self to the environment

metacognition

the ability to reflect upon a cognitive process

multiple demand system

the same set of brain regions becomes activated across a wide variety of task domains

utilized for executive processing across many different domains

core regions include the prefrontal cortex (PFC) as well as basal ganglia, cerebellum, etc.

unity and diversity model

contains three components: inhibition, shifting, and updating

inhibition (inhibitory control)

the ability to maintain task goals especially in the face of distraction

shifting

the ability that allows switching from task to task

updating

allowing the system to reset information in working memory in order to move to the next subgoal

psychological inertia

an executive dysfunction characterized by difficulties in initiation of action and have difficulty stopping if started an action

go no go task

pushing a button when certain stimuli appear and withholds response to other stimuli

stop signal task

responding quickly to a stimulus on the screen, but on a few trials after the stimulus is presented another signal occurs immediately to indicate response should be aborted

interference resolution

the ability to resolve conflict between competing or distracting information while performing a task

self ordered pointing task

participant views displays presented sequentially and need to point to a new item each time

sequence and planning

to reach a goal, one must determine what steps to take to attain the goal and in what order those steps must be taken

required knowing what comes before and what comes after

wisconsin card sorting test (WCST)

cards vary along three dimensions (number, shape, and color) and person must sort them into four piles with no explicit criteria

as person places each card onto one of the four piles, correct or incorrect feedback given and must deduce and adjust sorting

switch cost

likely due to updating and modifying current goal in working memory, overriding or inhibiting prior task response, selecting appropriate responses

longer the interval between trials, the easier it is to eliminate

error related negativity (ERN)

an event related signal observed via EEG, occurs ~100 ms after an error

amplitude increases under conditions in which response accuracy is emphasized

error positivity (Pe)

indexes awareness of an error

frequently follows the ERN by about 200 - 300 ms

source remains unclear but it may be generated in the insula

interospection

the ability to sense the physiological condition of the body

higher order thinking

a term broadly used to describe abilities enable more complicated aspects of thoughts

being able to think in an abstract and conceptual manner, deduce rules or regularity, be flexible and respond to novelty

analogical reasoning

another form of abstract reasoning

integrate relational information at a more abstract than concrete level

novelty

an event, situation, or action that has a low probability of occurring given a particular context

ventral attentional system

proposed to allow novel stimuli to capture attention

cognitive flexibility

looking at situations in various ways and/or producing a variety of behavior

required both in novel situations and when a new reaction must be made to an old situation