Executive Function in Preschool-Age Children

A primary aim of the neuropsychological revolution has been the mapping of what has come to be known as executive function (EF). This term encompasses a range of mental processes such as working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility that, together, regulate our social behavior, and our emotional and cognitive well-being.

In this book, top scientists from a variety of fields investigate executive function as it develops in early childhood. Because researchers differ in how they conceptualize basic processes and even in how they define EF itself, contributors begin by discussing comparability and replicability, key issues of primary importance to those seeking to move the field to a new level of rigor. Next, they tackle the nuts-and-bolts of the development of EF in preschoolers, including the neurobiological mechanisms and circuitry that underlie EF development as well as the role of EF in assessing risk and its counterpart, resilience. Finally, they highlight exciting new clinical applications of EF research, including the use of EF in contextualizing and assessing family risk, the impact of socioeconomic status on neurological development, and the promotion of EF development through early education programs.

James A. Griffin, PhD, is the deputy chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institutes of Health, and the director of the Early Learning and School Readiness Program.

Prior to NICHD, Dr. Griffin served as a senior research analyst in the Institute of Education Sciences at the U.S. Department of Education; as the assistant director for the social, behavioral, and education sciences in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; and as a research analyst at the Administration on Children, Youth and Families.

Dr. Griffin's career has focused on research and evaluation efforts related to service systems and early intervention programs designed to enhance the development and school readiness of children from at-risk and disadvantaged backgrounds.

Peggy McCardle, PhD, MPH, is an affiliated research scientist at the Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, CT, and an independent consultant. She is involved in editing volumes related to literacy and learning, mentoring young scholars and researchers, and consulting in a variety of areas, including child language development and learning, bilingualism, education, and learning disabilities. In her role as former chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development she was actively involved in the workshop that was the impetus for this volume.

Lisa S. Freund, PhD, is the chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). She is a developmental neuropsychologist who is known for her neuroimaging studies with children from different clinical populations and was an NICHD-supported scientist for several years. She is currently responsible for a multi-faceted research and training program at NICHD to promote investigations, both basic and applied, to gain a deeper understanding of the developing brain and associated behaviors.

Contributors

Introduction to Executive Function in Preschool-Age Children
James A. Griffin, Lisa S. Freund, Peggy McCardle, Rebecca DelCarmen-Wiggins, and Abigail Haydon

I. Conceptualization and Measurement of Executive Function

Why Improving and Assessing Executive Functions Early in Life Is Critical
Adele Diamond
Incorporating Early Development Into the Measurement of Executive Function: The Need for a Continuum of Measures Across Development
Stephanie M. Carlson, Susan Faja, and Danielle M. Beck
Structure, Measurement, and Development of Preschool Executive Function
Jennifer Mize Nelson, Tiffany D. James, Nicolas Chevalier, Caron A. C. Clark, and Kimberly Andrews Espy
Longitudinal Measurement of Executive Function in Preschoolers
Michael T. Willoughby and Clancy B. Blair
Conceptions of Executive Function and Regulation: When and to What Degree Do They Overlap?
Nancy Eisenberg and Qing Zhou

II. Neurodevelopment and Executive Function

Infant Cognitive Abilities: Potential Building Blocks of Later Executive Functions
Susan A. Rose, Judith F. Feldman, and Jeffery J. Jankowski
Psychobiology of Executive Function in Early Development
Martha Ann Bell and Kimberly Cuevas
Imaging Executive Functions in Typically and Atypically Developed Children
Tzipi Horowitz-Kraus, Scott K. Holland, and Lisa S. Freund
Development of Selective Sustained Attention: The Role of Executive Functions
Anna Fisher and Heidi Kloos

III. Executive Function and Translational Research on Risk and Prevention

Preschool Executive Functions in the Context of Family Risk
Megan M. McClelland, Leslie D. Leve, and Katherine C. Pears
Socioeconomic Status and the Development of Executive Function: Behavioral and Neuroscience Approaches
Gwendolyn M. Lawson, Cayce J. Hook, Daniel A. Hackman, and Martha J. Farah
Assessing Developmental Trajectories of Executive Function in Low-Income, Ethnic Minority Preschoolers: Opportunities and Challenges
Margaret O'Brien Caughy, Margaret Tresch Owen, and Jamie Hurst DeLuna
Promoting the Development of Executive Functions Through Early Education and Prevention Programs
Karen L. Bierman and Marcela Torres
Conceptual Clutter and Measurement Mayhem: Proposals for Cross-Disciplinary Integration in Conceptualizing and Measuring Executive Function
Frederick J. Morrison and Jennie K. Grammer

Index

About the Editors

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Executive Function in Preschool-Age Children Integrating Measurement, Neurodevelopment, and Translational Research

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials