Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, University of Maia, Maia, Portugal.
Institute of Psychology and Neuropsychology of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
Clin Psychol Psychother. 2022 Jul;29(4):1374-1391. doi: 10.1002/cpp.2718. Epub 2022 Feb 9.
Executive functions (EF) are higher-order cognitive processes present in the prefrontal cortex and are fundamental in planning, executing and monitoring goal-oriented behaviours. Evaluating EF in early stages of child development is essential for identifying any cognitive alterations in young children, given that it allows for early intervention and minimizes future complications. Additionally, it contributes to a better understanding of this construct in this age bracket, as well as its operational model. Study of EF has recently been the focus of multiple researchers; however, there is still a serious lack of instruments and measurements validated towards children's age bracket. This systematic review's main goal is to evaluate instruments and/or tasks that serve to evaluate and analyse EF and/or their components between the ages of 36 and 72 months. Forty-nine studies were analysed, containing multiple tasks and tools oriented towards EF and their constituent components. Results indicate the existence of various tasks that grade the different components independently from one another; nevertheless, they also confirm the lack of any global measurement instrument or method. Therefore, this systematic review presents itself as an important contribution in the study of EF, stressing not only the importance of further investing into constructing and validating new and better tools for evaluating the construct but also the study of operating models of executive functioning, especially in an age bracket where comprehending it is notoriously difficult.
执行功能（EF）是前额叶皮层中存在的高级认知过程，对于规划、执行和监测面向目标的行为至关重要。评估儿童发育早期的 EF 对于识别幼儿的任何认知改变至关重要，因为它可以进行早期干预并最大程度地减少未来的并发症。此外，它有助于更好地理解这个年龄段的这一结构及其运作模式。EF 的研究最近一直是多位研究人员的关注焦点；然而，针对儿童年龄段的仪器和测量方法仍然严重缺乏。本系统评价的主要目的是评估 36 至 72 个月之间用于评估和分析 EF 及其组成部分的工具和/或任务。分析了 49 项研究，其中包含了多个针对 EF 及其组成部分的任务和工具。结果表明，存在各种任务可以独立地对不同的组成部分进行评分；然而，它们也证实了缺乏任何全面的测量仪器或方法。因此，本系统评价本身就是 EF 研究的一个重要贡献，不仅强调了进一步投入构建和验证新的和更好的评估工具的重要性，而且强调了执行功能运作模式的研究，特别是在理解这个年龄段的认知功能特别困难的情况下。
