Individual differences in executive functions are almost entirely genetic in origin.

Full Abstract

Recent psychological and neuropsychological research suggests that executive functions--the cognitive control processes that regulate thought and action--are multifaceted and that different types of executive functions are correlated but separable. The present multivariate twin study of 3 executive functions (inhibiting dominant responses, updating working memory representations, and shifting between task sets), measured as latent variables, examined why people vary in these executive control abilities and why these abilities are correlated but separable from a behavioral genetic perspective. Results indicated that executive functions are correlated because they are influenced by a highly heritable (99%) common factor that goes beyond general intelligence or perceptual speed, and they are separable because of additional genetic influences unique to particular executive functions. This combination of general and specific genetic influences places executive functions among the most heritable psychological traits. These results highlight the potential of genetic approaches for uncovering the biological underpinnings of executive functions and suggest a need for examining multiple types of executive functions to distinguish different levels of genetic influences.(c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved

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Author information

Author/s: Friedman, Naomi P (NP); Miyake, Akira (A); Young, Susan E (SE); Defries, John C (JC); Corley, Robin P (RP); Hewitt, John K (JK);

Affiliation: Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA. naomi.friedman(-atsign-)colorado.edu

Grants: HD010333 (Agency:United States NICHD) ; MH01865 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; MH075814 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; MH63207 (Agency:United States NIMH)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural; Twin Study

Journal: Journal of experimental psychology. General (J Exp Psychol Gen), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-May; vol 137 (issue 2) : pp 201-25

Dates: Created 2008/05/13; Completed 2008/08/11;

PMID: 18473654, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adolescent
Adult
Aptitude - physiology
Attention - physiology
Cognition - physiology
Discrimination Learning - physiology
Female
Frontal Lobe - physiology
Genotype
Humans
Individuality
Inhibition (Psychology)

Inhibition (Psychology)
Intelligence - genetics; physiology
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Mental Recall - physiology
Neuropsychological Tests
Problem Solving - physiology
Reaction Time - genetics; physiology
Set (Psychology)
Social Environment
Twins, Dizygotic - genetics; psychology
Twins, Monozygotic - genetics; psychology

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