What Is an Executive Function, Anyway?
We had a great conversation in Mastering Executive Function this week, and one question really stayed with me:
“What exactly is an executive function, anyway?”
And then she said something that I think a lot of people feel but don’t always say out loud…
The more she learns, the less clear it feels.
Is it something you see on a brain scan?
Is it a behavior we observe?
Is it just a category researchers created?
Or is it actually something we can teach?
And I paused… because she was right.
It can feel like the definition keeps slipping just when you think you’ve got it.
The Pause: Brain Science
Here’s what I shared… and then where I took it a step further.
When we look at brain research, yes… we can see activity.
We can have someone complete a task, and certain areas of the brain will light up.
But we don’t see a label that says:
“This is working memory.”
“This is cognitive flexibility.”
What we see are circuits.
Multiple regions of the brain communicating with each other in real time.
And that’s why I say this all the time:
Executive functions do not travel alone.
But then the next question is…
If it’s all circuits, why do we say executive functions are in the prefrontal cortex?
And why do we even give them names?
The prefrontal cortex is heavily involved because it acts like a hub.
It’s coordinating information coming from different parts of the brain:
emotional input
memory systems
sensory information
past experiences
So while executive functions are not located in one single place, the prefrontal cortex is often acting like the conductor.
And the names?
-Working memory
-Cognitive flexibility
-Regulation
These are not “things” sitting in the brain.
They are labels for patterns.
Researchers needed a way to organize what they were seeing… but in real life, those patterns overlap constantly.
Over time, I’ve found it helpful to break executive functions into two groups: foundational and advanced.
Foundational executive functions are:
Regulation
Working Memory
Cognitive Flexibility
Attention
These are the processes happening within those circuits.
Advanced executive functions are:
Organization
Planning
Time Management
These are what we see… but they are built on those foundational systems working together.
And as I was thinking about that question later, I kept coming back to something I say all the time:
Working as an EF coach is like being a detective.
Because what you see is not always what’s actually happening.
You’re gathering clues.
You’re looking at patterns.
You’re asking:
Which executive functions are showing up here… and how are they working together?
Because again…
They don’t travel alone.
The Layer We Don’t Talk About Enough
And this is also why executive function coaching takes time.
We are not teaching a quick strategy.
We are not fixing a single behavior.
We are working with processes that are developing over a long period of time. The prefrontal cortex itself continues developing into the late 20s and early 30s.
And the systems we’re supporting are:
interconnected
experience-dependent
and constantly changing based on environment, demand, and regulation
So when families ask,
“Why does this take so long?”
The answer is:
Because we’re not building a checklist.
We’re supporting the development of a complex neurological system.
So what is an executive function?
It’s not just something you see on a scan.
It’s not just a behavior.
It’s not just a category.
It’s a way of describing how the brain coordinates itself in real time to manage tasks, thoughts, and actions.
And the reason it feels so hard to define… is because we’re trying to define something that is constantly working as a system.
And this is exactly the shift we make in Mastering Executive Function.
We stop asking,
“What is the behavior?”
And we start asking,
“What is the brain doing right now?”
Because that’s where real support begins.
A Small Shift in How We Talk to Students
There’s one more piece here that I think is really important.
When we ask students to try a strategy, we often say things like:
“Practice this.”
“Keep doing it.”
“Use this every day.”
But we don’t always tell them why.
What I’ve found is that when students understand what’s happening in their brain, it changes how they engage.
So instead of just saying,
“Let’s practice this skill,”
we can say:
“When you do this, your brain is actually connecting different parts and building a pathway.”
Each time they repeat it, that connection gets stronger. And over time, the brain doesn’t have to work as hard. That’s when the skill starts to feel easier.
