Glossary
Executive dysfunction
What is Executive Dysfunction?
Executive dysfunction is the impairment of executive functions—the cognitive processes that enable goal-directed behavior, including planning, working memory, inhibition, and cognitive flexibility. It is a core feature of numerous neurological and psychiatric conditions.
How it works
Executive difficulties can affect planning, inhibition, working memory, and flexible adjustment to changing demands. Performance can also be affected by stress, sleep, and health. This is why an assessment needs to consider the person’s circumstances as well as the demands of the task.
Applied example
Someone can understand a meal plan and still struggle to turn it into dinner. They must plan the shopping, remember ingredients and coordinate preparation. Knowing what a healthy meal contains does not perform those tasks for them. This is an illustration of the demands involved, not enough information to diagnose the person.
Why it matters
When the difficulty lies in organizing and carrying out an action, another explanation of why the action matters may miss the problem. Look at where the task breaks down. Knowledge and the ability to use it are related, but they are not the same thing.