Educational Psychologists (EPs) are often asked to see children that may have difficulties with attention or children with impairments in executive function. Research suggests that there is a link between attention and executive function. There is research evidence linking Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with executive function difficulties. It is proposed that there will be a link between primary school children’s attention and executive function skills as measured by standardised assessment. The present study involved assessing 31 participants on subtests of the Test of Everyday Attention in Children (TEA-Ch) (to gain a measure of attention) and the Neuropsychological Assessment (Second Edition) (NEPSY-II) (to gain a measure of executive function).Participants were aged between 6;01 and 10;08 (mean 8;06) when they were assessed at the pre-intervention stage. Participants were all from one primary school in the North West of England. Significant correlations between participants’ performance on the TEA-Ch and NEPSY-II were found. There is some research evidence that executive function interventions can improve children’s executive functions, but this is at the individual case level. There were no studies identified that looked at whole school executive function interventions. Executive function staff training was developed and delivered to teachers and teaching assistants in the primary school. A supporting pack of written materials was produced to help staff. Evaluation questionnaires and staff interviews identified useful aspects of the training. It is proposed that the consultation model of training delivery was particularly important. Staff interviews indicated that interventions had been carried out at the whole school and class level. Participants were reassessed at the post-intervention stage using the TEA-Ch and the NEPSY-II. Results indicated significant improvements in both attention and executive function skills for participants overall. Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests identified that there were significant increases in participants’ mean TEA-Ch and mean NEPSY scores following the whole school intervention. The results suggest the intervention may have been most successful in improving children’s selective attention, response inhibition, flexibility and task initiation skills.

The semantic system contributes to the process of speech production in two major ways. The basic information is contained within semantic representations, and the semantic control system manipulates that knowledge as required by task and context. This thesis explored the evidence for interactivity between semantic and phonological stages of speech production, and examined the role of semantic control within speech production. The data chapters focussed on patients with semantic aphasia or SA, who all have frontal and/or temporoparietal lesions and are thought to have a specific impairment of semantic control. In a novel development, grammatical class and cueing effects in this patient group were compared with healthy participants under tempo naming conditions, a paradigm which is thought to impair normal semantic control by imposing dual task conditions. A basic picture naming paradigm was used throughout, with the addition of different grammatical classes, correct and misleading phonemic cues, and repetition and semantic priming: all these manipulations could be expected to place differing loads on a semantic control system with either permanent or experimentally induced impairment. It was found that stimuli requiring less controlled processing such as high imageability objects, pictures with simultaneous correct cues or repetition primed pictures were named significantly more accurately than items which needed more controlled processing, such as low imageability actions, pictures with misleading phonemic cues and unprimed pictures. The cueing evidence offered support to interactive models of speech production where phonological activation is able to influence semantic selection. The impairment in tasks such as the inhibition of task-irrelevant material seen in SA patients and tempo participants, and the overlap between cortical areas cited in studies looking at both semantic and wider executive control mechanisms suggest that semantic control may be part of a more generalised executive system.

O Transtorno do Espectro do Autismo é um transtorno neurobiológico que implica em déficits no desenvolvimento de linguagem, de cognição e aspectos sociais. Cada vez mais tem se investigado sobre a interdependência das áreas de linguagem e cognição e os fatores intervenientes no processo terapêutico dessa população. Este estudo propôs verificar o impacto da estimulação das funções executivas (EFE) no desenvolvimento de linguagem, sobretudo nos aspectos pragmáticos da comunicação, através da avaliação do Perfil Funcional da Comunicação (PFC) e do Desempenho Sócio-Cognitivo (DSC). Foram realizadas duas estimulações. O primeiro estudo propôs a EFE domiciliar, ministrada por pais de seis crianças com autismo, sem intervenção terapêutica, durante 10 semanas com acompanhamento semanal realizada pela pesquisadora. O segundo estudo propôs a EFE durante a terapia fonoaudiológica, ministrada pelos próprios terapeutas durante 12 semanas. Os dados foram registrados e analisados estatisticamente. Foram observadas correlações importantes entre a efetividade da EFE e as habilidades trabalhadas com a evolução avaliada através do PFC e DSC, além da importância tanto de considerar e envolver os pais e/ou responsáveis no processo terapêutico quanto da capacitação do profissional fonoaudiólogo para considerar as questões cognitivas no desenvolvimento de linguagem dessa população / The Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurobiological disorder that involves deficits in the development of language, cognition and social aspects. The interdependence of the areas of language and cognition and the factors involved in the therapeutic process of this population has been increasingly researched. This study was designed to verify the impact of the executive functions stimulation (EFS) in language development, especially in the pragmatic aspects of communication, through the evaluation of the functional profile of Communication (FPC) and the Sociocognitive Performance (SCP). Two stimulation programs were performed. The first study proposed that the EFS was conducted at home by the parents of six children with autism, during a 10-week period without therapeutic intervention, with weekly monitoring performed by the researcher. The second study proposed the EFS conducted by the therapist during regular speech-language therapy, during 12 weeks. Data were recorded and statistically analyzed. Correlations were observed between the effectiveness of the EFS and the targeted skills. The evolution was assessed through the FPC and SCP protocols. These results stress the need for the speech language therapist to approach cognitive issues in the work with language development of children with ASD. Besides that, the value of considering and involving parents and/or caregivers in the therapeutic process became clear

There are many studies conducted on cognitive performance and of different aspects that can affect the performance. However, the literature review reveal that there is a knowledge gap in the area of measurements for bicycle stability and in how bicycle stability is affected during acute alcohol intoxication. The aim of this study is, therefore, to investigate if different group characteristics such as cycling experience, physical activity, sensation-seeking, or previous alcohol habits have an effect on bicycle performance or executive functions during acute alcohol intoxication. The method of the study was to measure stability while bicycling on a tread-mill and give participants doses of alcohol until a Breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) level of approximately 0.8‰ was reached. The results showed that cognitive performance was almost unaffected for the different groups studied. The results of bicycle stability were almost equal in effect of time among the four different group characteristics in both Roll and YAW measurements. Three of the group characteristics showed a main effect or a tendency for interaction effect of group by time. The conclusion is that the measure of Roll, the vertical orientation on a bicycle, maybe is the most effective stability measurement for bicycles.

abstract: Mild TBI (mTBI) has been associated with subtle executive function (EF) and cognitive-communication deficits. In bilinguals, there are unique cognitive demands required to control and process two languages effectively. Surprisingly, little is known about the impact of mTBI on EF, communication, and language control in bilinguals. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the cognitive-communication abilities in bilinguals with a history of mTBI, identify any language control impairments, and explore the relationship between these language control impairments and domain-general cognitive control abilities. To this end, three-hundred and twenty-seven monolingual and bilingual college students with and without mTBI history participated in two experiments. In these experiments, EF, communication, and language control were examined using experimental and clinical tasks as well as self-rating scales. In Experiment 1, there was an interaction between mTBI history and language group (monolinguals vs. bilinguals) in how participants performed on a clinical measure of EF and a verbal fluency task. That is, only bilinguals with mTBI scored significantly lower on these tasks. In addition, there was a significant correlation between errors on a language switching task and performance on non-verbal EF tasks. In Experiment 2, a subgroup of bilinguals with persistent cognitive and behavioral symptoms reported greater everyday communication challenges in their first and second languages. Also, unbalanced bilinguals reported greater EF difficulties than monolinguals and balanced bilinguals regardless of mTBI history. In conclusion, bilinguals may face unique cognitive-communication challenges after mTBI. Factors related to the bilingual experience (e.g., language balance, daily language use) should be considered in clinical evaluation and future research. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Speech and Hearing Science 2020

Syfte. Syftet med studien var att beskriva arbetsterapeutiska interventioner riktade mot barn och ungdomar 6 - 17 år med nedsatt aktivitetsförmåga härledd till exekutiv dysfunktion, som kan möjliggöra delaktighet i skolaktivitet.Metod. För att besvara studiens syfte genomfördes en litteraturöversikt inom arbetsterapi. En allmän litteraturöversikt valdes för att skapa en beskrivande och syntetiserande sammanställning inom det avgränsade området. Resultatet av litteraturöversikten baseras på tolv artiklar. Dataanalysen skedde genom kvalitetsgranskning och artiklarnas innehåll granskades utifrån studiens frågeställningar samt utefter OTIPM:s fyra interventionsmodeller. Resultat. Resultatet gav åtta olika arbetsterapeutiska interventioner varav sex av de åtta interventionerna var aktivitetsinriktade och baserades på barnets/ungdomens prioriterade aktivitetsmål. Interventionerna går ut på att utveckla strategier vilka ska vara överförbara till olika miljöer. Två av interventionerna var funktionsinriktade. Slutsatser. Resultatet indikerar på vikten av samordnade insatser på individ-, grupp- och organisatorisk nivå, detta för att möjliggöra delaktighet i aktivitet för barnet/ungdomen med exekutiv dysfunktion. Hur stödjande och förstående föräldrar, vänner och skolpersonal är bidrar till hur lyckade strategierna blir och hur delaktig barnet/ungdomen känner sig i sina aktiviteter. / Purpose. The purpose of the study was to describe occupational therapeutic interventions aimed at children and adolescents 6 - 17 years with reduced activity ability derived from executive dysfunction, which may enable participation in school activity.Method. To answer the purpose of the study, a literature review in occupational therapy was conducted. A general literature review was chosen to create a descriptive and synthesizing compilation within the delimited field. The results of the literature review are based on twelve articles. The data analysis was done through quality review and the content of the articles was examined on the basis of the study's questions and on OTIPM:s four intervention models. Results. The result yielded eight different occupational therapeutic interventions, of which six of the eight interventions were activity-oriented and were based on the child / adolescent's priority activity goals. The interventions are designed to develop strategies that should be transferable to different environments. Two of the interventions were function-oriented.Conclusions. The result indicates the importance of coordinated efforts at individual, group and organizational level, to enable participation in activity for the child / youth with executive dysfunction. How supportive and understanding parents, friends and school staff are is how successful the strategies become and how involved the child / youth feel in their activities.

La maladie d’Alzheimer (MA) et la maladie de Parkinson (MP), sont considérées aujourd’hui comme un problème majeur de santé publique du fait qu’elles sont diagnostiquées trop tardivement et demeurent sans traitement curatif. D’importants efforts doivent donc être mis en œuvre pour identifier des marqueurs précliniques sensibles et spécifiques au risque de développer une maladie neurodégénérative. Dans cette optique, plusieurs auteurs ont récemment montré que les fonctions exécutives et le control locomoteur dans une situation de double tâche, sont altérés aux stades précliniques de la MA et la MP. En routine clinique les médecins sont des fois confrontées à ces individus ayant des troubles exécutivo-locomoteurs mais qui ne sont pas immédiatement repérés en raison de leurs capacités de réserves particulièrement élevées. Pris ensemble, les travaux de cette thèse s’articulent autour d’un large spectre des notions liées au vieillissement normal et pathologique qui sont les fonctions exécutives, le contrôle locomoteur et la réserve cognitive. L’originalité de cette thèse réside dans le développement d’un « nouveau test neuropsychologique : Le Stroop Switching Card Test » évaluant l’efficience exécutive globale avec des mesures spécifiques à chaque composante et deux nouvelles mesures de la réserve cognitive dont une qualitative (i.e., un nouveau questionnaire) et l’autre quantitative (seuil du déclin exécutif associé à une basse réserve cognitive). En parallèle nous avons développé trois nouveaux paradigmes de doubles tâches fondés sur le profil physiopathologique de la MA et la MP. Les résultats révèlent que la batterie de tests que nous proposons présente un intérêt potentiel pour détecter précocement un déclin exécutif chez les sujets âgés, mais aussi pour distinguer le vieillissement normal du vieillissement accéléré. En conclusion, les résultats préliminaires de cette thèse confirment la validité de nouveaux tests dans l’évaluation des fonctions exécutive, de la réserve cognitive et du contrôle locomoteur. Des études longitudinales sont nécessaires pour confirmer que ces outils pourraient avoir une valeur ajoutée dans le diagnostic précoce et différencié des MA et MP. / To date, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) are diagnosed in the advanced stage of degenerative brain processes, when clinical symptoms occur. In the absence of curative therapy, current research is focused on prevention by identifying subtle signs of early stage neurodegeneration. In the light of these clinical perspectives, recent research in behavioral neurosciences has already found that executive functions (i.e., notably inhibition and switching) and gait control as assessed by standard neuropsychological tests (e.g., Stroop Test and Trail Making Test) and dual-task walking paradigms, respectively, are already altered at both the preclinical and prodromal phases of AD and PD. We would argue that it is imperative to take into account factors modulating the capacity to cope with age-related brain changes, among which the most important is the cognitive reserve. Together, the main goals of this thesis are to develop: (i) a new neuropsychological test, assessing executive functions, separately and together, (ii) new measures of CR; and (iii) new dual-task walking paradigms based on the neuropathological profiles of AD and PD, by manipulating both the nature of executive processes and cognitive load. These tools were validated in healthy young adults and older adults with a high sensitivity. Specifically, we have found that these tools allow detecting early executive decline. Furthermore, they allow to differentiate normal aging from accelerated aging. In conclusion, the preliminary results of this thesis confirm the validity of the new tests in the evaluation of executive function, cognitive reserve and gait control. Longitudinal studies are needed to confirm that these tools could have an added value in the early and differential diagnosis of AD and PD.

Numerous studies point to a link between fine motor skills and executive functioning (EF) in 3- to 6-year-olds (e.g., Oberer et al., 2017; MacDonald et al., 2016); however, it is unclear if this relation exists at younger ages. Therefore, the current project aimed to further explore EF and fine motor skills in typically developing 2-year-olds. Participants completed the Minnesota Executive Function Scale (MEFS), Spin the Pots, Shape Stroop, Snack Delay, and the Fine Motor portion (FMQ) of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scale Version-2. These findings demonstrate a link between general EF and visual-motor integration in 2-year-olds.

Introduction: Previous research describes significant associations between criminal offending behaviour and traumatic brain injury (TBI). In young offenders, particularly, TBI is significantly more prevalent than in the general youth population. This association might be explained by the fact that key TBI sequelae (e.g., aggression, behavioural and cognitive impulsivity, emotional dysregulation) can place individuals at risk for criminal offending. However, at least two critical questions remain relatively under-investigated: Is there crossnational variability in the prevalence of TBI in young offenders and in the emotional, behavioural, and cognitive profile of young offenders with and without TBI? Few studies report on prevalence of TBI in young offender populations from low- or middle-income countries (LMICs), and fewer describe the neuropsychological profiles of TBI-afflicted young offenders from LMICs. Method: Participants were a South African sample of 25 young offenders and 56 non-offender controls. Conducting such investigations in South Africa is valuable because (a) crime rates, particularly those related to violent offences, are higher in this country than elsewhere in the world, and (b) the prevalence of TBI in South Africa is three times the global rate. All participants were administered self-report measures of emotion regulation, aggression, antisocial behaviour, as well as standardized tests of various executive functions (planning, cognitive flexibility, generative fluency, inhibition, problem solving, and rule learning/maintenance) from the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS) battery. I also gathered self-report information about their history of TBI, including whether it was accompanied by loss of consciousness (LoC). Results: Prevalence of TBI was higher in offenders (n = 18/25; 72%) than in non-offenders (n = 24/56; 43%). Offenders reported experiencing more severe TBI: The distribution of TBI with LoC was significantly different across offender and non-offender groups, p < .001. Analyses detected significant main effects of offender status on all outcomes; significant main effects of TBI on emotion regulation, aggression, and antisocial behaviour; and significant offender x TBI interaction effects on emotion regulation and aggression, ps < .036. Conclusion: These findings are broadly consistent with previous studies in this literature. Hence, the present study confirms the importance of understanding associations between TBI and offending (particularly in LMICs) and how the co-occurrence of the two is predictable and can have cumulative effects on affect, behaviour, and cognition. Because sustaining a TBI is preventable, describing the risk for negative outcomes and the socioeconomic costs thereof can inform policy development, rehabilitation planning, and initiatives to reduce recidivism rates.

Adolescence is an important developmental period for executive function as well as establishing lifelong health habits like diet and exercise. However, connections between exercise, executive function and dietary behaviors have not yet been adequately studied in adolescents, especially in terms of exercise duration. This research seeks to establish how 30 versus 60 minutes of exercise affects the association between executive function, calorie consumption and food-specific inhibition. The current research uses a within-participant design and linear mixed modeling to test the impact of exercise bout duration and executive function on calorie consumption and food-specific inhibition (food Go/No-Go accuracy and reaction time). This paper concludes that for adolescents, there may be a small impact of EF on dietary behaviors. It also concludes that 30 versus 60 minutes of non-cognitively demanding exercise (i.e., treadmill running) does not affect these associations in meaningful ways. Overall, the practical advantages of 30 minutes versus 60 minutes of exercise may make this a better recommendation for teens, but additional research on the impact of exercise is needed to inform these recommendations.