executive control
Research Papers
Efficacy of Neurofeedback Versus Pharmacological Support in Subjects with ADHD
Behavioral training in neurofeedback has proven to be an essential complement to generalize the effects of pharmacological support in subjects who have attention deficit with hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Therefore, this investigation attempts to analyze the efficacy of neurofeedback compared with pharmacological support and the combination of both. Participants were 131 students, classified into four groups: control (did not receive neurofeedback or pharmacological support), neurofeedback group, pharmacological support group, and combined group (neurofeedback + pharmacological support). Participants’ executive control and cortical activation were assessed before and after treatment. Results indicate that the combined group obtained more benefits and that the neurofeedback group improved to a greater extent in executive control than the pharmacological support group. It is concluded that this kind of training may be an alternative to stimulate activation in subjects with ADHD.
View Full Paper →Effects of Mindful Awareness Practices on Executive Functions in Elementary School Children
A school-based program of mindful awareness practices (MAPs) was evaluated in a randomized control study of 64 second- and third-grade children ages 7–9 years. The program was delivered for 30 minutes, twice per week, for 8 weeks. Teachers and parents completed questionnaires assessing children's executive function immediately before and following the 8-week period. Multivariate analysis of covariance on teacher and parent reports of executive function (EF) indicated an interaction effect between baseline EF score and group status on posttest EF. That is, children in the MAPs group who were less well regulated showed greater improvement in EF compared with controls. Specifically, those children starting out with poor EF who went through the MAPs training showed gains in behavioral regulation, metacognition, and overall global executive control. These results indicate a stronger effect of MAPs on children with executive function difficulties. The finding that both teachers and parents reported changes suggests that improvements in children's behavioral regulation generalized across settings. Future work is warranted using neurocognitive tasks of executive functions, behavioral observation, and multiple classroom samples to replicate and extend these preliminary findings.
View Full Paper →Effects of Hemoencephalographic (HEG) Training at Three Prefrontal Locations Upon EEG Ratios at Cz
Background. Light in the wavelength region of 650 to 1000 nanometers is able to penetrate living human tissue, including bone. Medical research has exploited this optical window into the body to develop non-invasive monitoring of brain functioning. In 1994 Herschel Toomim discovered that he could both measure and teach persons to control the amount of oxygenated blood flowing in the prefrontal regions with such an optical device. He has labeled the biofeedback of brain blood flow hemoencephalography (HEG). Methods. A fifteen-year-old male with a history of mild articulation problems and poor spelling was administered twenty sessions of combined HEG/EEG biofeedback, with a referential recording at Cz. Feedback in each session was conducted in three trials with the HEG optodes placed over the left eye, at midline, and over the right eye for ten minutes each. The order of placement was counterbalanced across trials. Changes in HEG levels within each trial were computed and plotted across sessions, as was the theta/beta ratio for each trial. Results. The subject clearly learned improved voluntary control over brain blood flow. The slope of increases of HEG within each trial improved across sessions at all three forehead locations. There were three indications from this case that HEG training to improve attention might be most efficacious at the midline location: (a) the theta/beta ratio at Cz decreased slightly over sessions only in response to HEG training at midline, (b) bursts of beta lasting ten seconds or more occurred more often, and (c) occasionally a marked increase in HEG within a trial was associated with a corresponding increase in power in beta. This occurred only with HEG at midline. Conclusion. HEG biofeedback is a promising treatment modality, especially for improving the functioning of executive control systems mediated by the prefrontal regions of the cerebral cortex.
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