Executive Functioning as a Predictor of Children's Mathematics Ability: Inhibition, Switching, and Working Memory

“Bull and Scerif [45] investigated the existence of a relationship between EF and BMS in children in preschool and primary education.”

“individual differences in children's mathematics achievement (Bull and Scerif 2001; Gathercole and Pickering 2000b; Holmes and Adams 2006; Swanson and Kim 2007).”

“Working memory has been found to be a predictor of math performance (Bull & Scerif, 2001) and to differentiate level of math performance (Gathercole, Pickering, Ambridge, & Wearing, 2004).”

“Several studies suggest that children who are poor on mathematical tasks have a reduced visual-spatial span (Bull & Scerif, 2001) and therefore we varied to length to have a better sense if difficulties were related to magnitude or spatial judgment.”

“Conversely, the executive functioning may be assessed through the relationship between these functions and their expression (e.g., everyday behaviors; Bull and Scerif, 2001; Isquith et al., 2004).”

“Previous research has shown that cognitive flexibility plays a considerable role in learning in childhood (e.g. Bull and Scerif 2001; Ropovik 2014), and especially in math-related subjects.”

“Previous research has found that better WM is associated with greater mathematical understanding (Bailey et al., 2012; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Friso-van Den Bos et al., 2013; Gathercole, Pickering, Knight, & Stegmann, 2004; Raghubar et al., 2010).”

“There is much support for the notion that executive functions influence math performance (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001), that MLD is associated with poor executive functioning and working memory (e.g., Geary, Hoard, Byrd-Craven, Nugent, & Numtee, 2007), and that children with low working memory have…”

“Children with poor arithmetic skills have been shown to perform more poorly than children without such deficits on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task and the Tower of London, two common measures of exec- utive function (Bull & Scerif, 2001; Sikora et al., 2002; Snow, 1992).”

“…between patterns of thinking and manage multiple concepts is vital for children’s language development (Jacques & Zelazo, 2005), arithmetic skills (Bull & Scerif, 2001), problem-solving, creativity (Lin et al., 2014; Ritter et al., 2012), multi-tasking (Ionescu, 2012) and reading skills (Kercood…”

“If the n-back task does indicate WM ability, our findings are consistent with several other studies examining typically developing children (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001; Maybery & Do, 2003; Raghubar, Barnes, & Hecht, 2010; St. Clair-Thompson & Gathercole; 2006; Thorell, 2007), children with math…”

“…that individuals with MLD also exhibit impairments in non-numerical skills such as attention (Ashkenazi et al., 2009; Swanson, 2011), inhibition (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Swanson, 2011; Espy et al., 2004), working memory (Geary, 2011; Bull and Scerif, 2001; Passolunghi and Siegel, 2004; McLean…”

“However, in light of the notion that less skilled learners rely more on cognitive resources compared to more proficient students (Bull and Scerif, 2001), it can be expected to find a gradual reduction in the role of the cognitive components as the development of reading and arithmetic fluency…”

“…develop slowly throughout our long childhood and adolescence, and are linked to important developmental outcomes including mature theory of mind (Hughes, 1998; Hughes & Ensor, 2007; Kloo et al., 2020), mathematical reasoning capacities (Bull & Scerif, 2001), and educational Developmental Science.”

“Indeed, measures of EF are better predictors of later academic achievement than IQ or entry-level reading and math skills (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001; McClelland, Morrison, & Holmes, 2000; Waber, Gerber, Turcios, Wagner & Forbes, 2006).”

“…are very important for academic achievement (e.g., Blair & Diamond, 2008; Brock, Rimm-Kaufman, Nathanson, & Grimm, 2009; Bull, Espy, & Wiebe, 2008; Bull & Scerif, 2001; St Clair-Thompson & Gathercole, 2006; Vandenbroucke, Verschueren, & Baeyens, 2017) and stay predictive for school success even…”

“Possible cognitive candidates that have been suggested to underlie this correlation are nonverbal abilities (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Geary, 2004) and general language skills (Moll et al., 2015).”

“inhibition and working memory) plays in these areas [25].”

“Separable but correlated factors for inhibition, mental set shifting, and information updating and monitoring have been reliably observed in studies on young adults and children (Bull & Scerif, 2001; Friedman et al., 2006, 2008; Miyake et al., 2000).”

“Cognitive flexibility is defined as being able to adapt to different tasks and think creatively (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Diamond, 2013).”

“For example, in mental arithmetic tasks individuals are required to use their working memory, as well as shifting and updating [52,53] to be successful.”

“These include child academic ability (Blair & Razza, 2007; Brock, Rimm-Kaufman, Nathanson, & Grimm, 2009; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Espy et al., 2004; Willoughby, Kupersmidt, Voegler-Lee, & Bryant, 2011) and ADHD symptomatology (Pauli-Pott & Becker, 2011), given that their relationship with EF has been…”

“…response is important throughout one’s lifespan, and has been demonstrated to be highly correlated with academic achievement in subjects such as mathematical and reading ability (Blair & Razza, 2007; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Espy et al., 2004; Hillman et al., 2012) even at a young age (e.g., 3–5 yrs).”

“We targeted preschool children because executive function (EF), which is a major function of PFC, develops throughout the preschool period [5].”

“In adults, verbal WM capacity is related to language comprehension (Caplan & Waters, 2006), and, in children, WM efficiency is linked to a range of language, learning, and academic competencies (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001).”

“, 2010), mathematics (Bull and Scerif, 2001; St Clair-Thompson and Gathercole, 2006; Brock et al., 2009; Lee et al., 2012) and short- and long-term academic success (Blair and Razza, 2007; McClelland et al.”

“Conversely, enhanced scholastic achievement, which has been found to necessitate cognitive control processes (Bull & Scerif, 2001; DeStefano & LeFevre, 2004; St. ClairThompson & Gathercole, 2006), has been observed following school-based interventions specifically targeting weight gain during…”

“Along with implicating working memory impairments in MD, poor executive functioning appears to underlie MD (Blair & Razza, 2007; Bull & Scerif, 2001).”

“Further, when different sub-components of EF were examined in parallel, unique contributions of each on children’s math ability were still prevalent (e.g., Bull and Scerif, 2001; St Clair-Thompson and Gathercole, 2006; Kroesbergen et al., 2009).”

“Inhibitory control (IC) skills arguably underlie all EFs (Barkley, 1997; Miyake et al., 2000) permitting “goal directed behavior in novel situations” (Bull & Scerif, 2001, p. 288), and are closely associated with academic skills (Bierman, Nix, Greenberg, Blair, & Domitrovich, 2008; NICHD Early…”

“First, the integration of academic learning tasks while being physically active likely increased the challenge on executive functions, as these functions are important for solving for example academic problem-solving tasks in mathematics (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Cantin et al., 2016).”

“Many recent investigations (e.g., Bull & Scherif, 2001; Gathercole & Pickering, 2000; Swanson, Jerman, & Zheng, 2008; Wu et al., 2008) have confirmed the substantial involvement of the central executive in solving arithmetic word problems.”

“…during this critical phase of skill acquisition where cognitive control modulates performance prior to the establishment of long term knowledge representations (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Cantin et al., 2016; Clark et al., 2010; R€othlisberger et al., 2013; St Clair-Thompson and Gathercole, 2006).”

“For example, Bull and Scerif identified significant associations between performance-based measures of attention shifting, working memory, and inhibition and performance-based tests of mathematical achievement in a large sample of third grade students [21].”

“Last, working memory has been shown to predict learning math, language comprehension, and academic progress of children across different ages (Alloway, Gathercole, Kirkwood, & Elliott, 2009; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Seigneuric, Ehrlich, Oakhill, & Yuill, 2000).”

“There also is evidence of frontal lobe impairment associated with sleep deprivation and SBD [36], and it is widely known that Math performance relies on frontal-lobe executive functions [37].”

“Working memory and knowledge of number facts are also important predictors of arithmetic performance[11,12].”

“In studies of neurotypical children, early EF skills are predictive of a preschooler’s later school readiness (McClelland et al., 2007) and math and reading skills (Bull & Scerif, 2001).”

“…skills that play a role in mathematical performance, including working memory (e.g., Raghubar et al., 2010; Friso-van den Bos et al., 2013, for a meta-analysis) or executive functions (e.g., Bull and Scerif, 2001; Friso-van den Bos et al., 2013), such as inhibition (e.g., Gilmore et al., 2013).”

“…that children’s inhibitory control skills are related to their symbolic mathematics skills (e.g., Blair & Razza, 2007; Bull, Espy, & Wiebe, 2008; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Clark, Pritchard, & Woodward, 2010; Espy et al., 2004; Fuhs, Nesbitt, Farran, & Dong, 2014; St ClairThompson & Gathercole,…”

“Inhibitory control refers to the skill to disregard disruptive stimuli and undesired responses in favor of a target stimuli (Bull and Scerif, 2001; Monette et al., 2015).”

“…that selecting the best strategy on a given problem is more resource-consuming than making a poorer strategy selection (Barouillet & Le´pine, 2005; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Sella et al., 2012; Geary et al., 1992; Imbo, & Vandierendonck, 2007; Lemaire & Lecac-heur, 2011), more resources would be…”

“Indeed, studies have often explored the link between one specific scholastic domain and EF components (e.g., Altemeier et al., 2008, in literacy; Bull & Scerif, 2001; van der Ven, Kroesbergen, Boom, & Leseman, 2012, in numeracy) or between different scholastic skills and an EF composite score…”

“Research indicates that individual differences in EF skills are meaningful and predictive of children’s academic (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001; Bull, Espy, & Wiebe, 2008; Gathercole, Pickering, Knight, & Stegmann, 2004) and social-emotional skills (e.g., Nigg, Quamma, Greenberg, & Kusché, 1999;…”

“Executive functioning encompasses a range of related cognitive functions (see Miyake et al., 2000; Bull and Scerif, 2001; Lehto et al., 2003; St Clair-Thompson and Gathercole, 2006; Swanson, 2006; Bull et al., 2008).”

“9 Executive dysfunction can profoundly impact all dimensions of a child’s development 11–14 and is a core feature of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) 15 and autism spectrum symptoms.”

“…cross-sectional studies show that WM and IC account for significant unique variance in arithmetic, beyond variance explained by IQ, age, processing speed (PS) or reading, in a wide range of age groups (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001; Monette, Bigras, & Guay, 2011; see Cragg & Gilmore, 2014 for a review).”

“…that domain general abilities such as working memory or inhibitory control contribute to the development of math abilities (Bull et al., 2008; Bull and Scerif, 2001; Cragg and Gilmore, 2014; Libertus et al., 2011; Passolunghi and Siegel, 2001; St Clair-Thompson and * Corresponding author at:…”

“Poor working memory skills seem to be related to early numeracy (Bull & Scerif, 2001; Espy, McDiarmid, Cwik, Stalets, Hambry & Senn, 2004; Friso-Van de Bos, Kolkman, Kroesbergen & Leseman, 2014; No € el, 2009; Rasmussen & Bisanz, 2005).”

“Finally, data collected with neuropsychological tests of EFs suggest that EFs influence children’s mathematical performance and strategies (e.g., Bull, Johnston, & Roy, 1999; Bull & Scerif, 2001; Geary, Brown, & Samaranayake, 1991; Lemaire & Lecacheur, 2011; McKenzie, Bull, & Gray, 2003).”

“…processing (Tallal, 1980), phonological awareness (Bradley & Bryant, 1983), verbal memory (Byrne & Shea, 1979), or executive functioning (e.g., Bull & Scerif, 2001; Everatt, Warner, Miles, & Thomson, 1997; Sikora, Haley, Edwards, & Bulter, 2002; van der Sluis, de Jong, & van der Leij, 2004;…”

“Academic assignments involve functions such as memory, attention and motivational abilities (Bull and Scerif 2001; Spinath et al. 2006) and these functions that are known to be impaired in ADHD (Sagvolden et al. 2005; Tripp and Wickens 2008; Willcutt et al. 2005).”

“This assertion has been supported by evidence from research studies suggesting a relationship between executive functions and performance in literacy [54,55], mathematics [51,56] and science [57].”