#executive-function — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #executive-function, aggregated by home.social.
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DATE: June 28, 2026 at 12:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Brain scans reveal how uneven intelligence scores relate to attention deficits in children
Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who possess a distinct split between their verbal and nonverbal intelligence face greater challenges with self-control and focus. These mental gaps line up with lower blood flow in the front of the brain during tasks that require impulse management. The results were published in the journal NeuroImage.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common neurodevelopmental conditions in school-age children. Its primary traits include an inability to maintain focus, physical restlessness, or impulsive behavior. These symptoms often stem from weaknesses in executive function. Executive function acts as the brain’s management system, organizing thoughts, regulating emotions, and guiding planned behavior.
Psychologists frequently evaluate cognitive abilities using comprehensive assessments that divide intelligence into two main categories. Verbal intelligence involves language-based problem-solving, vocabulary, and accumulated factual knowledge. Performance intelligence deals with visual processing, spatial reasoning, and hands-on tasks like arranging blocks or recognizing patterns.
In typical development, a child’s scores in these verbal and performance categories are usually somewhat balanced. However, some children exhibit a wide split between the two scores, a condition described as an intelligence quotient discrepancy. Previous research has indicated that large splits between verbal and performance skills are unusually common among children who have attention issues.
Some theorists propose that verbal scores measure academic achievement and acquired information, while performance scores measure the raw ability to process new variables simultaneously. A gap between the two might reflect an underlying disruption in how different regions of the brain communicate. Xin Chen, a researcher at Fujian Children’s Hospital in China, and colleagues designed an experiment to see how this intelligence gap impacts day-to-day behavior.
The research team recruited 114 children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. All participants were between the ages of six and twelve and had general intelligence test scores of 70 or higher. None of the children were currently taking medication for their attention symptoms.
Examiners administered a standard cognitive test to measure each child’s verbal and performance abilities. Based on the results, the investigators divided the children into two roughly matched groups. One group possessed a large gap between their verbal and performance scores. The other group had relatively balanced profiles without an intelligence gap.
To measure real-world skills, the research team asked the children’s parents to complete a standardized behavioral survey. The questionnaire asked caregivers to rate how often their child struggled with daily tasks. It covered specific categories like emotional control, physical organization, working memory, and task initiation.
The children also completed a computerized test to gauge their ability to process sights and sounds. The software required participants to click a mouse when they saw or heard the number one. They were instructed to hold back completely when they encountered the number two. This allowed the researchers to measure both raw reaction times and the ability to suppress an incorrect response.
To understand the biological mechanisms behind these behaviors, the scientists selected a random subset of 46 children. This smaller group underwent brain imaging while performing a second computerized assessment. The researchers utilized a noninvasive imaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy.
Functional near-infrared spectroscopy uses a specialized cap fitted with small light sensors. These sensors project harmless beams of near-infrared light through the scalp and skull. By measuring how the light scatters and bounces back, the system can detect changes in the concentration of oxygenated blood. Active brain tissue requires more oxygen, so tracking blood flow allows researchers to map out which brain areas are working the hardest.
While wearing the sensor cap, the subset of children played a game meant to trigger their impulse control. The screen displayed images of different animals in quick succession. The children were told to press a button as fast as possible when they saw a cat or a dog.
At random intervals, the game switched its rules. When an image of a chicken appeared, the children had to press the button. When an image of a duck appeared, they had to entirely stop themselves from reacting.
The overall results revealed a distinct pattern among the children who possessed an intelligence gap. On the parent surveys, this group scored worse on overall executive function compared to the children with balanced intelligence. Caregivers reported that children with an intelligence gap struggled the most with starting new tasks and shifting smoothly between different activities.
Similar outcomes appeared during the computerized visual and auditory tests. The group with an intelligence gap recorded slower overall reaction times. They had particular difficulty with the visual portions of the test, committing more errors when trying to hold back a mouse click.
When researchers looked back at the original intelligence tests, they noticed the biggest difference between the two groups came down to arithmetic scores. Arithmetic requires a child to hold numbers in their working memory and manipulate them mentally. The scientists suggest that this specific weakness heavily influences how severe a child’s attention symptoms might appear.
The brain imaging data provided a biological reflection of these behavioral struggles. During the animal game, the children with an intelligence gap showed reduced blood flow to the right medial prefrontal cortex. This brain area is heavily involved in regulating emotions, maintaining motivation, and making decisions.
The researchers found a direct relationship between the severity of a child’s attention deficits and the lack of blood flow in that specific frontal region. Children whose parents reported the highest levels of daily distractibility showed the lowest levels of oxygenated blood in the medial prefrontal cortex. Conversely, the results were not statistically significant when the researchers looked at the left prefrontal cortex or the temporal lobes.
Through statistical modeling, the team also identified a behavioral trait known as monitoring as a primary indicator for hyperactivity and scattered attention. Monitoring is the mental ability to supervise one’s own work to ensure a goal is met. Children who lack this supervisory skill are highly prone to careless errors in school and social settings.
The study authors listed several caveats to their findings. The project relied on older, revised editions of standard intelligence and behavioral assessments. Relying on these older formats might make it difficult to compare the current data against research conducted with newly updated testing standards.
Additionally, the participant pool was limited exclusively to Chinese children. Behaviors and test outcomes can be influenced by cultural or educational environments, meaning the results might not automatically apply to other populations. The study design also grouped all types of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder together, rather than separating children who are mostly hyperactive from those who just struggle to focus.
The investigators also did not include a control group of typically developing children. Having a baseline comparison would help isolate whether the blood flow patterns are unique to the intelligence gap or a broader feature of attention deficits. Future projects will need to incorporate larger sample sizes and different types of cognitive tasks.
Brain imaging technology also has inherent limitations. The light sensors can pick up noise from superficial blood flow in the scalp, which can sometimes blur the deeper brain signals. The authors suggest that subsequent experiments should use advanced equipment channels to filter out surface-level interference.
The study, “Effect of Intelligence Quotient Discrepancy on Attention and Executive Function in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: An fNIRS Study,” was authored by Xin Chen, Liang-liang Chen, Jing-rong Wang, Ying-ying Cai, and Xiao-dan Yu.
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Private, vetted email list for mental health professionals: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org
Unofficial Psychology Today Xitter to toot feed at Psych Today Unofficial Bot @PTUnofficialBot
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #IQDiscrepancy #ADHDinChildren #AttentionDeficitHyperactivityDisorder #ExecutiveFunction #VerbalVsPerformanceIQ #fNIRS #BrainImaging #PrefrontalCortex #ChildCognition #NeuroImageResearch
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DATE: June 28, 2026 at 12:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Brain scans reveal how uneven intelligence scores relate to attention deficits in children
Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who possess a distinct split between their verbal and nonverbal intelligence face greater challenges with self-control and focus. These mental gaps line up with lower blood flow in the front of the brain during tasks that require impulse management. The results were published in the journal NeuroImage.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common neurodevelopmental conditions in school-age children. Its primary traits include an inability to maintain focus, physical restlessness, or impulsive behavior. These symptoms often stem from weaknesses in executive function. Executive function acts as the brain’s management system, organizing thoughts, regulating emotions, and guiding planned behavior.
Psychologists frequently evaluate cognitive abilities using comprehensive assessments that divide intelligence into two main categories. Verbal intelligence involves language-based problem-solving, vocabulary, and accumulated factual knowledge. Performance intelligence deals with visual processing, spatial reasoning, and hands-on tasks like arranging blocks or recognizing patterns.
In typical development, a child’s scores in these verbal and performance categories are usually somewhat balanced. However, some children exhibit a wide split between the two scores, a condition described as an intelligence quotient discrepancy. Previous research has indicated that large splits between verbal and performance skills are unusually common among children who have attention issues.
Some theorists propose that verbal scores measure academic achievement and acquired information, while performance scores measure the raw ability to process new variables simultaneously. A gap between the two might reflect an underlying disruption in how different regions of the brain communicate. Xin Chen, a researcher at Fujian Children’s Hospital in China, and colleagues designed an experiment to see how this intelligence gap impacts day-to-day behavior.
The research team recruited 114 children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. All participants were between the ages of six and twelve and had general intelligence test scores of 70 or higher. None of the children were currently taking medication for their attention symptoms.
Examiners administered a standard cognitive test to measure each child’s verbal and performance abilities. Based on the results, the investigators divided the children into two roughly matched groups. One group possessed a large gap between their verbal and performance scores. The other group had relatively balanced profiles without an intelligence gap.
To measure real-world skills, the research team asked the children’s parents to complete a standardized behavioral survey. The questionnaire asked caregivers to rate how often their child struggled with daily tasks. It covered specific categories like emotional control, physical organization, working memory, and task initiation.
The children also completed a computerized test to gauge their ability to process sights and sounds. The software required participants to click a mouse when they saw or heard the number one. They were instructed to hold back completely when they encountered the number two. This allowed the researchers to measure both raw reaction times and the ability to suppress an incorrect response.
To understand the biological mechanisms behind these behaviors, the scientists selected a random subset of 46 children. This smaller group underwent brain imaging while performing a second computerized assessment. The researchers utilized a noninvasive imaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy.
Functional near-infrared spectroscopy uses a specialized cap fitted with small light sensors. These sensors project harmless beams of near-infrared light through the scalp and skull. By measuring how the light scatters and bounces back, the system can detect changes in the concentration of oxygenated blood. Active brain tissue requires more oxygen, so tracking blood flow allows researchers to map out which brain areas are working the hardest.
While wearing the sensor cap, the subset of children played a game meant to trigger their impulse control. The screen displayed images of different animals in quick succession. The children were told to press a button as fast as possible when they saw a cat or a dog.
At random intervals, the game switched its rules. When an image of a chicken appeared, the children had to press the button. When an image of a duck appeared, they had to entirely stop themselves from reacting.
The overall results revealed a distinct pattern among the children who possessed an intelligence gap. On the parent surveys, this group scored worse on overall executive function compared to the children with balanced intelligence. Caregivers reported that children with an intelligence gap struggled the most with starting new tasks and shifting smoothly between different activities.
Similar outcomes appeared during the computerized visual and auditory tests. The group with an intelligence gap recorded slower overall reaction times. They had particular difficulty with the visual portions of the test, committing more errors when trying to hold back a mouse click.
When researchers looked back at the original intelligence tests, they noticed the biggest difference between the two groups came down to arithmetic scores. Arithmetic requires a child to hold numbers in their working memory and manipulate them mentally. The scientists suggest that this specific weakness heavily influences how severe a child’s attention symptoms might appear.
The brain imaging data provided a biological reflection of these behavioral struggles. During the animal game, the children with an intelligence gap showed reduced blood flow to the right medial prefrontal cortex. This brain area is heavily involved in regulating emotions, maintaining motivation, and making decisions.
The researchers found a direct relationship between the severity of a child’s attention deficits and the lack of blood flow in that specific frontal region. Children whose parents reported the highest levels of daily distractibility showed the lowest levels of oxygenated blood in the medial prefrontal cortex. Conversely, the results were not statistically significant when the researchers looked at the left prefrontal cortex or the temporal lobes.
Through statistical modeling, the team also identified a behavioral trait known as monitoring as a primary indicator for hyperactivity and scattered attention. Monitoring is the mental ability to supervise one’s own work to ensure a goal is met. Children who lack this supervisory skill are highly prone to careless errors in school and social settings.
The study authors listed several caveats to their findings. The project relied on older, revised editions of standard intelligence and behavioral assessments. Relying on these older formats might make it difficult to compare the current data against research conducted with newly updated testing standards.
Additionally, the participant pool was limited exclusively to Chinese children. Behaviors and test outcomes can be influenced by cultural or educational environments, meaning the results might not automatically apply to other populations. The study design also grouped all types of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder together, rather than separating children who are mostly hyperactive from those who just struggle to focus.
The investigators also did not include a control group of typically developing children. Having a baseline comparison would help isolate whether the blood flow patterns are unique to the intelligence gap or a broader feature of attention deficits. Future projects will need to incorporate larger sample sizes and different types of cognitive tasks.
Brain imaging technology also has inherent limitations. The light sensors can pick up noise from superficial blood flow in the scalp, which can sometimes blur the deeper brain signals. The authors suggest that subsequent experiments should use advanced equipment channels to filter out surface-level interference.
The study, “Effect of Intelligence Quotient Discrepancy on Attention and Executive Function in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: An fNIRS Study,” was authored by Xin Chen, Liang-liang Chen, Jing-rong Wang, Ying-ying Cai, and Xiao-dan Yu.
-------------------------------------------------
Private, vetted email list for mental health professionals: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org
Unofficial Psychology Today Xitter to toot feed at Psych Today Unofficial Bot @PTUnofficialBot
-------------------------------------------------
#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #IQDiscrepancy #ADHDinChildren #AttentionDeficitHyperactivityDisorder #ExecutiveFunction #VerbalVsPerformanceIQ #fNIRS #BrainImaging #PrefrontalCortex #ChildCognition #NeuroImageResearch
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Routines. Clear expectations. Small wins.
These aren't "accommodations."
They're just how ADHD brains work best.
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DATE: June 20, 2026 at 09:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Impulsivity is the missing link between childhood trauma and intimate partner violence
A study of men convicted of intimate partner violence against women found that those who reported childhood physical or psychological abuse tended to display greater physical aggression toward their partners. Impulsivity might be mediating the link between childhood abuse experiences and intimate partner violence in adulthood. The paper was published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research.
Intimate partner violence is harmful or abusive behavior by a current or former romantic partner. It can occur in marriages, dating relationships, cohabiting partnerships, and relationships that have ended. Intimate partner violence can take many forms.
For example, physical violence includes actions such as hitting, pushing, kicking, choking, or using a weapon. Sexual violence includes forced or unwanted sexual activity and pressure to engage in sexual acts. Psychological abuse may involve threats, intimidation, humiliation, insults, or deliberate efforts to frighten the partner.
Coercive control can include monitoring communications, restricting movements, isolating the partner from family and friends, or controlling everyday decisions. Economic abuse may involve withholding money, preventing the partner from working, or creating financial dependence.
Intimate partner violence can affect people of any gender, age, or social background, although some forms and consequences are more common in certain groups. It can also affect children who witness it or live in a threatening home environment. Key risk factors increasing the likelihood that a person will engage in this form of violence include emotional dysregulation, impaired executive functioning, substance use, childhood maltreatment, and lack of social support.
Study author Andrea Antonio Gheorghe and his colleagues conducted a study aiming to identify the self-regulatory mechanisms through which childhood abuse and perceived social support relate to intimate partner violence against women. More specifically, they wanted to investigate the possible mediating role impulsivity and attentional functioning may play in the relationship between childhood abuse, social support, and intimate partner violence against women.
Study participants were 211 convicted male perpetrators of intimate partner violence against women. They were recruited from the CONTEXTO Program, a community-based psychoeducational intervention designed for men sentenced to up to two years in prison for the mentioned form of violence, legally classified as gender-based violence under Spanish law. The participants’ average age was 41 years. Twenty-four percent of them were married, and 74% were employed.
The study participants completed assessments of childhood abuse (the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale), perceived social support (the Functional Social Support Questionnaire), conflict management and resolution strategies (the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale), and the risk of recidivism (i.e., attacking their partner again, using the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment Guide). They also completed a set of self-regulatory measures including assessments of impulsivity (the Plutchik Impulsivity Scale) and attention-related characteristics, i.e., inattention, impulsivity, sustained attention, and vigilance (using the Conners’ Continuous Performance Test-3).
Results showed that participants who reported more severe childhood physical and psychological abuse were more likely to be physically aggressive toward their partner and were at a higher risk of recidivism toward others. Lower perceived social support was also associated with a higher risk of assaulting the partner again.
The study authors tested a statistical model proposing that impulsivity mediates the link between childhood abuse on one side, and physical aggression and risk of recidivism in adulthood on the other. The results indicated that such a relationship between the examined factors is highly probable.
In fact, the researchers found that impulsivity fully mediated the link; once a perpetrator’s lack of impulse control was accounted for in the statistical model, the direct link between childhood abuse and adult violence vanished. This suggests that childhood trauma drives adult violence specifically by damaging a person’s ability to control their impulses.
The researchers also tested whether sustained attention acts as a mediator between a lack of social support and the risk of recidivism. The data showed a weak link suggesting this pathway is possible, but it did not survive strict statistical corrections, meaning it requires further testing before it can be confirmed.
“Impulsivity represents a key cognitive control pathway linking childhood maltreatment to IPVAW-related [intimate partner violence against women-related] outcomes in convicted perpetrators, supporting intervention targets focused on self-regulatory control. Attention-related mechanisms may contribute to the association between social support and recidivism risk, but this pathway requires confirmatory replication,” the study authors concluded.
The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the psychological underpinnings of intimate partner violence. However, it should be noted that the cross-sectional design of this study does not allow any definitive causal inferences to be derived from the results. Additionally, the childhood abuse experience assessment used in this study was based on reported memories of such experiences, leaving room for recall bias to have affected the results. Finally, because all participants were already convicted offenders in Spain, the results may not apply to unconvicted individuals or different cultural settings.
The paper, “From childhood abuse and lack of social support to intimate partner violence: The mediating role of impulsivity and attentional functioning,” was authored by Andrea Antonio Gheorghe, Javier Comes-Fayos, Marisol Lila, Ángel Romero-Martínez, and Luis Moya-Albiol.
-------------------------------------------------
Private, vetted email list for mental health professionals: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org
Unofficial Psychology Today Xitter to toot feed at Psych Today Unofficial Bot @PTUnofficialBot
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #Impulsivity #ChildhoodTrauma #IntimatePartnerViolence #IPVAW #SelfRegulation #ViolencePrevention #MentalHealthResearch #ExecutiveFunction #AttentionControl #SocialSupport
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DATE: June 20, 2026 at 09:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Impulsivity is the missing link between childhood trauma and intimate partner violence
A study of men convicted of intimate partner violence against women found that those who reported childhood physical or psychological abuse tended to display greater physical aggression toward their partners. Impulsivity might be mediating the link between childhood abuse experiences and intimate partner violence in adulthood. The paper was published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research.
Intimate partner violence is harmful or abusive behavior by a current or former romantic partner. It can occur in marriages, dating relationships, cohabiting partnerships, and relationships that have ended. Intimate partner violence can take many forms.
For example, physical violence includes actions such as hitting, pushing, kicking, choking, or using a weapon. Sexual violence includes forced or unwanted sexual activity and pressure to engage in sexual acts. Psychological abuse may involve threats, intimidation, humiliation, insults, or deliberate efforts to frighten the partner.
Coercive control can include monitoring communications, restricting movements, isolating the partner from family and friends, or controlling everyday decisions. Economic abuse may involve withholding money, preventing the partner from working, or creating financial dependence.
Intimate partner violence can affect people of any gender, age, or social background, although some forms and consequences are more common in certain groups. It can also affect children who witness it or live in a threatening home environment. Key risk factors increasing the likelihood that a person will engage in this form of violence include emotional dysregulation, impaired executive functioning, substance use, childhood maltreatment, and lack of social support.
Study author Andrea Antonio Gheorghe and his colleagues conducted a study aiming to identify the self-regulatory mechanisms through which childhood abuse and perceived social support relate to intimate partner violence against women. More specifically, they wanted to investigate the possible mediating role impulsivity and attentional functioning may play in the relationship between childhood abuse, social support, and intimate partner violence against women.
Study participants were 211 convicted male perpetrators of intimate partner violence against women. They were recruited from the CONTEXTO Program, a community-based psychoeducational intervention designed for men sentenced to up to two years in prison for the mentioned form of violence, legally classified as gender-based violence under Spanish law. The participants’ average age was 41 years. Twenty-four percent of them were married, and 74% were employed.
The study participants completed assessments of childhood abuse (the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale), perceived social support (the Functional Social Support Questionnaire), conflict management and resolution strategies (the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale), and the risk of recidivism (i.e., attacking their partner again, using the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment Guide). They also completed a set of self-regulatory measures including assessments of impulsivity (the Plutchik Impulsivity Scale) and attention-related characteristics, i.e., inattention, impulsivity, sustained attention, and vigilance (using the Conners’ Continuous Performance Test-3).
Results showed that participants who reported more severe childhood physical and psychological abuse were more likely to be physically aggressive toward their partner and were at a higher risk of recidivism toward others. Lower perceived social support was also associated with a higher risk of assaulting the partner again.
The study authors tested a statistical model proposing that impulsivity mediates the link between childhood abuse on one side, and physical aggression and risk of recidivism in adulthood on the other. The results indicated that such a relationship between the examined factors is highly probable.
In fact, the researchers found that impulsivity fully mediated the link; once a perpetrator’s lack of impulse control was accounted for in the statistical model, the direct link between childhood abuse and adult violence vanished. This suggests that childhood trauma drives adult violence specifically by damaging a person’s ability to control their impulses.
The researchers also tested whether sustained attention acts as a mediator between a lack of social support and the risk of recidivism. The data showed a weak link suggesting this pathway is possible, but it did not survive strict statistical corrections, meaning it requires further testing before it can be confirmed.
“Impulsivity represents a key cognitive control pathway linking childhood maltreatment to IPVAW-related [intimate partner violence against women-related] outcomes in convicted perpetrators, supporting intervention targets focused on self-regulatory control. Attention-related mechanisms may contribute to the association between social support and recidivism risk, but this pathway requires confirmatory replication,” the study authors concluded.
The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the psychological underpinnings of intimate partner violence. However, it should be noted that the cross-sectional design of this study does not allow any definitive causal inferences to be derived from the results. Additionally, the childhood abuse experience assessment used in this study was based on reported memories of such experiences, leaving room for recall bias to have affected the results. Finally, because all participants were already convicted offenders in Spain, the results may not apply to unconvicted individuals or different cultural settings.
The paper, “From childhood abuse and lack of social support to intimate partner violence: The mediating role of impulsivity and attentional functioning,” was authored by Andrea Antonio Gheorghe, Javier Comes-Fayos, Marisol Lila, Ángel Romero-Martínez, and Luis Moya-Albiol.
-------------------------------------------------
Private, vetted email list for mental health professionals: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org
Unofficial Psychology Today Xitter to toot feed at Psych Today Unofficial Bot @PTUnofficialBot
-------------------------------------------------
#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #Impulsivity #ChildhoodTrauma #IntimatePartnerViolence #IPVAW #SelfRegulation #ViolencePrevention #MentalHealthResearch #ExecutiveFunction #AttentionControl #SocialSupport
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DATE: June 13, 2026 at 04:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: How a third grader’s afternoon restlessness predicts their chances of finishing college
A recent study published in Developmental Psychology suggests that a child’s ability to control their physical movement tends to wear down as the school day progresses. This steady decline is linked to their long-term academic success. By tracking elementary students with wearable devices, researchers found that children who can sustain their behavioral control for longer periods tend to achieve more in high school and complete more years of education as adults.
Self-regulation is the ability to manage thoughts, emotions, and actions to fit the expectations of a specific environment. In a standard classroom setting, this might look like a student raising their hand to speak rather than shouting out an answer. It also involves staying seated during a lesson instead of wandering around the room.
“Being in the classroom requires some degree of self-control. Children are expected to walk instead of run, keep their hands to themselves, and stay in their seats when the situation requires,” says lead author Andrew E. Koepp, an assistant professor of applied psychology at New York University.
Controlling these natural impulses takes mental effort. Because managing behavior requires ongoing cognitive energy, a child’s capacity to regulate their actions might not be a fixed trait.
“Applying this self-control takes effort and by the final ring of the school bell, children have been doing it for hours,” Koepp says. As a result, this ability may change throughout the day as mental fatigue sets in.
Traditional tools for measuring behavior usually rely on adult observations or surveys conducted over several months. Sometimes researchers also use one-time laboratory tasks to test a child’s restraint. These methods make it difficult to observe how a student’s self-control might fluctuate from hour to hour in a natural school setting.
Adult observations can also introduce interpersonal biases. For example, a teacher’s subjective rating of a student might be influenced by a halo effect, where a generally positive impression colors their specific behavioral ratings. A continuous objective measurement tool helps avoid these human biases.
To overcome this measurement barrier, scientists can use wearable technology. Devices that track physical movement provide continuous naturalistic data about how active a child is during the day. This passive sensing happens in the background without interrupting the student’s normal routine.
Since regulating physical movement is a primary way young students are expected to show self-control, tracking gross motor activity offers a window into their behavioral endurance. The authors sought to understand if this physical self-regulation deteriorates across the typical school hours. They also wanted to see if individual differences in this daily behavioral stamina might predict a student’s educational success years into the future.
The authors analyzed data from a large national project that followed a group of children from birth to age 26. Their specific analytic sample included 747 participants. The demographic breakdown of the group was 49 percent female, 76 percent White, 13 percent Black, 6 percent Hispanic, and 5 percent other racial or ethnic backgrounds.
When these participants were in the third grade, they wore small devices called accelerometers around their waists for up to five school days. An accelerometer is a wearable sensor that measures the frequency and intensity of a person’s physical movement. The research team collected this continuous movement data for each hour between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to establish a timeline of behavior.
“We focused on third grade because it marks a transition to middle childhood and greater independent control of behavior,” the authors note in the study. This period represents an important phase when students generally stay in a single classroom rather than moving around for different subjects.
In addition to the movement tracking, teachers and trained classroom observers independently rated the children on hyperactive and disruptive behaviors. The children also completed standardized academic tests in the third grade to measure their learning in math and reading. Following up years later, the participants completed academic tests again at age 15.
When the participants reached 26 years of age, they reported the total number of years of education they had completed. The researchers also examined observational data of the participants’ mothers interacting with them during early childhood. These early assessments occurred at regular intervals from age six months up to four and a half years.
The data showed that, on average, a child’s physical activity levels tend to steadily increase as the school day progresses. The authors suggest this rising physical activity reflects a gradual decline in the students’ ability to regulate their behavior. As the hours pass, the mental effort required to sit still seems to deplete.
“Our findings imply that, behaviorally speaking, most children tend to ‘lose it’ a bit by the end of the school day,” notes Koepp. This physical restlessness appears to mirror mental exhaustion.
There were notable individual differences among the students. Some children showed much steeper daily increases in activity than others. Teachers and classroom observers rated the students who had the steepest activity increases as more impulsive and disruptive overall.
The scientists found that the rate at which a child’s activity increased across the day predicted their academic performance. Children who showed larger increases in physical movement from morning to afternoon tended to have lower academic test scores in the third grade. This suggests that the ability to sustain behavioral regulation is tied to a student’s capacity to engage with classroom learning.
“Interestingly, those who could ‘keep it together’ for longer tended to do better in school and were more likely to achieve educational success long-term,” says Koepp. The data highlighted a notable link to higher education.
This pattern had long-term implications. Lower academic achievement in the third grade provided a developmental pathway to lower test scores in high school. It also predicted fewer total years of education completed by the time the participants reached early adulthood. In fact, children with more self-control had 20 percent greater odds of completing a four-year degree.
The researchers also discovered links to the early childhood experiences of the participants. Mothers who provided more cognitive stimulation and showed higher sensitivity in the early years had children with better behavioral control in preschool.
In turn, that early self-control in preschool predicted smaller increases in physical activity across the third-grade school day. This sequence provides evidence for a developmental cascade where early positive parenting helps build the foundational skills needed for behavioral stamina in elementary school.
While the tracking devices offer an objective way to measure behavior, the authors point out a few limitations. The wearable sensors only capture physical movement, which means they do not measure how well a child regulates their emotions or their internal attention.
Readers should not misinterpret the findings to mean that all physical movement in the classroom is harmful. Physical activity can help children learn by allowing them to explore their environment or use gestures to express complex ideas. The type of movement captured by the waist-worn devices was mostly large bodily shifts that can disrupt traditional classroom tasks.
Another limitation involves the demographic makeup of the participants. The children in this study were born in 1991, and the group was predominantly White. The findings might not perfectly reflect the experiences of a more contemporary and diverse student population.
Future studies might look at how these patterns change as children grow older and their brain development advances. Older students generally become less active and typically develop stronger executive functions. Executive functions are the higher-level mental skills needed to plan ahead, focus attention, and meet goals.
“We know that self-control helps children ignore distractions and focus on learning. Our findings imply that self-control is not just a personality trait, but something that can wear out and also perhaps something that could be restored,” says Koepp.
The researchers suggest exploring specific parts of the school day that might help restore a child’s behavioral stamina. For instance, the data indicated brief shifts in activity around the lunch hour. This hints that a break for food and socializing might temporarily reset a student’s self-control.
“As a society, we should value activities like recess that could let children blow off some steam and potentially recover some of this self-control. It might even benefit their learning,” Koepp adds.
Scientists could also investigate whether a good night of sleep or a vigorous physical education class helps children maintain their focus later in the day. Identifying the daily routines that support behavioral regulation could provide educators with simple ways to improve classroom learning without requiring entirely new curricula.
Future research could also incorporate multiple types of wearable technology. Combining movement sensors with devices that track heart rate or eye movements could provide a much broader picture of how a student manages their arousal and attention. Such tools could help schools find ways to better accommodate movement while supporting student focus.
This research was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. The study, “Keeping It Together: Hourly Dynamics of Children’s Behavioral Regulation at School in a Decades-Long Cohort Study,” was authored by Andrew E. Koepp, Elizabeth T. Gershoff, Deborah Lowe Vandell, Angela L. Duckworth, and Allyson P. Mackey.
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DATE: June 13, 2026 at 04:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: How a third grader’s afternoon restlessness predicts their chances of finishing college
A recent study published in Developmental Psychology suggests that a child’s ability to control their physical movement tends to wear down as the school day progresses. This steady decline is linked to their long-term academic success. By tracking elementary students with wearable devices, researchers found that children who can sustain their behavioral control for longer periods tend to achieve more in high school and complete more years of education as adults.
Self-regulation is the ability to manage thoughts, emotions, and actions to fit the expectations of a specific environment. In a standard classroom setting, this might look like a student raising their hand to speak rather than shouting out an answer. It also involves staying seated during a lesson instead of wandering around the room.
“Being in the classroom requires some degree of self-control. Children are expected to walk instead of run, keep their hands to themselves, and stay in their seats when the situation requires,” says lead author Andrew E. Koepp, an assistant professor of applied psychology at New York University.
Controlling these natural impulses takes mental effort. Because managing behavior requires ongoing cognitive energy, a child’s capacity to regulate their actions might not be a fixed trait.
“Applying this self-control takes effort and by the final ring of the school bell, children have been doing it for hours,” Koepp says. As a result, this ability may change throughout the day as mental fatigue sets in.
Traditional tools for measuring behavior usually rely on adult observations or surveys conducted over several months. Sometimes researchers also use one-time laboratory tasks to test a child’s restraint. These methods make it difficult to observe how a student’s self-control might fluctuate from hour to hour in a natural school setting.
Adult observations can also introduce interpersonal biases. For example, a teacher’s subjective rating of a student might be influenced by a halo effect, where a generally positive impression colors their specific behavioral ratings. A continuous objective measurement tool helps avoid these human biases.
To overcome this measurement barrier, scientists can use wearable technology. Devices that track physical movement provide continuous naturalistic data about how active a child is during the day. This passive sensing happens in the background without interrupting the student’s normal routine.
Since regulating physical movement is a primary way young students are expected to show self-control, tracking gross motor activity offers a window into their behavioral endurance. The authors sought to understand if this physical self-regulation deteriorates across the typical school hours. They also wanted to see if individual differences in this daily behavioral stamina might predict a student’s educational success years into the future.
The authors analyzed data from a large national project that followed a group of children from birth to age 26. Their specific analytic sample included 747 participants. The demographic breakdown of the group was 49 percent female, 76 percent White, 13 percent Black, 6 percent Hispanic, and 5 percent other racial or ethnic backgrounds.
When these participants were in the third grade, they wore small devices called accelerometers around their waists for up to five school days. An accelerometer is a wearable sensor that measures the frequency and intensity of a person’s physical movement. The research team collected this continuous movement data for each hour between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to establish a timeline of behavior.
“We focused on third grade because it marks a transition to middle childhood and greater independent control of behavior,” the authors note in the study. This period represents an important phase when students generally stay in a single classroom rather than moving around for different subjects.
In addition to the movement tracking, teachers and trained classroom observers independently rated the children on hyperactive and disruptive behaviors. The children also completed standardized academic tests in the third grade to measure their learning in math and reading. Following up years later, the participants completed academic tests again at age 15.
When the participants reached 26 years of age, they reported the total number of years of education they had completed. The researchers also examined observational data of the participants’ mothers interacting with them during early childhood. These early assessments occurred at regular intervals from age six months up to four and a half years.
The data showed that, on average, a child’s physical activity levels tend to steadily increase as the school day progresses. The authors suggest this rising physical activity reflects a gradual decline in the students’ ability to regulate their behavior. As the hours pass, the mental effort required to sit still seems to deplete.
“Our findings imply that, behaviorally speaking, most children tend to ‘lose it’ a bit by the end of the school day,” notes Koepp. This physical restlessness appears to mirror mental exhaustion.
There were notable individual differences among the students. Some children showed much steeper daily increases in activity than others. Teachers and classroom observers rated the students who had the steepest activity increases as more impulsive and disruptive overall.
The scientists found that the rate at which a child’s activity increased across the day predicted their academic performance. Children who showed larger increases in physical movement from morning to afternoon tended to have lower academic test scores in the third grade. This suggests that the ability to sustain behavioral regulation is tied to a student’s capacity to engage with classroom learning.
“Interestingly, those who could ‘keep it together’ for longer tended to do better in school and were more likely to achieve educational success long-term,” says Koepp. The data highlighted a notable link to higher education.
This pattern had long-term implications. Lower academic achievement in the third grade provided a developmental pathway to lower test scores in high school. It also predicted fewer total years of education completed by the time the participants reached early adulthood. In fact, children with more self-control had 20 percent greater odds of completing a four-year degree.
The researchers also discovered links to the early childhood experiences of the participants. Mothers who provided more cognitive stimulation and showed higher sensitivity in the early years had children with better behavioral control in preschool.
In turn, that early self-control in preschool predicted smaller increases in physical activity across the third-grade school day. This sequence provides evidence for a developmental cascade where early positive parenting helps build the foundational skills needed for behavioral stamina in elementary school.
While the tracking devices offer an objective way to measure behavior, the authors point out a few limitations. The wearable sensors only capture physical movement, which means they do not measure how well a child regulates their emotions or their internal attention.
Readers should not misinterpret the findings to mean that all physical movement in the classroom is harmful. Physical activity can help children learn by allowing them to explore their environment or use gestures to express complex ideas. The type of movement captured by the waist-worn devices was mostly large bodily shifts that can disrupt traditional classroom tasks.
Another limitation involves the demographic makeup of the participants. The children in this study were born in 1991, and the group was predominantly White. The findings might not perfectly reflect the experiences of a more contemporary and diverse student population.
Future studies might look at how these patterns change as children grow older and their brain development advances. Older students generally become less active and typically develop stronger executive functions. Executive functions are the higher-level mental skills needed to plan ahead, focus attention, and meet goals.
“We know that self-control helps children ignore distractions and focus on learning. Our findings imply that self-control is not just a personality trait, but something that can wear out and also perhaps something that could be restored,” says Koepp.
The researchers suggest exploring specific parts of the school day that might help restore a child’s behavioral stamina. For instance, the data indicated brief shifts in activity around the lunch hour. This hints that a break for food and socializing might temporarily reset a student’s self-control.
“As a society, we should value activities like recess that could let children blow off some steam and potentially recover some of this self-control. It might even benefit their learning,” Koepp adds.
Scientists could also investigate whether a good night of sleep or a vigorous physical education class helps children maintain their focus later in the day. Identifying the daily routines that support behavioral regulation could provide educators with simple ways to improve classroom learning without requiring entirely new curricula.
Future research could also incorporate multiple types of wearable technology. Combining movement sensors with devices that track heart rate or eye movements could provide a much broader picture of how a student manages their arousal and attention. Such tools could help schools find ways to better accommodate movement while supporting student focus.
This research was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. The study, “Keeping It Together: Hourly Dynamics of Children’s Behavioral Regulation at School in a Decades-Long Cohort Study,” was authored by Andrew E. Koepp, Elizabeth T. Gershoff, Deborah Lowe Vandell, Angela L. Duckworth, and Allyson P. Mackey.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #selfregulation #academicachievement #wearables #childdevelopment #educationalresearch #executivefunction #classroombehavior #earlyeducation #psychology #educationtech
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What to Write When You Don’t Know What to Write
The blank page is not waiting for your best thinking. It's not a place you perform reflection. It's a place you find out what you actually think. That's a different process. And it only works if you're willing to start without knowing where you're going.https://journalingwrite.wordpress.com/2026/06/12/what-to-write-when-you-dont-know-what-to-write/
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DATE: June 9, 2026 at 06:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: A 16-year study reveals how childhood lying patterns predict adult outcomes
URL: https://www.psypost.org/a-16-year-study-reveals-how-childhood-lying-patterns-predict-adult-outcomes/
A new longitudinal study published in Development and Psychopathology provides evidence that most children exhibit low or declining levels of lying as they grow up, which generally does not lead to serious problems in adulthood. However, the research also suggests that a small subset of children who lie frequently or show increasing deception over time tends to face a higher risk of developing antisocial personality symptoms and facing criminal convictions later in life.
Deception is a common human behavior that emerges as early as the preschool years. While most people have the cognitive capacity to lie, research shows that the majority of adults do so infrequently. The overall rate of lying tends to decline as people age. However, a small portion of the population lies prolifically, sometimes developing into a problematic habit.
Past research has often viewed lying as a static trait or measured it at a single point in time. The transactional model of lie development offers a different perspective. This framework conceptualizes truthfulness and dishonesty as dynamic behaviors that change over a person’s life. According to this model, a child’s lying habits are shaped by an ongoing interaction between their mental development, their social environment, and their individual personality traits.
Much of the existing research on childhood deception relies on short-term laboratory experiments. These experiments often place children in artificial situations to see if they will lie for a reward or to hide a misdeed. While these studies reveal how children develop the mental skills needed to lie, they do not capture how deception unfolds in real-world settings over many years.
To address this gap, researchers wanted to track patterns, or trajectories, of lie-telling from early childhood into young adulthood. They sought to identify whether distinct groups of children follow different paths of dishonesty as they age.
“We know that lie-telling abilities emerge in young children due to their developing cognitive abilities (Theory of Mind, executive functioning) and we know from adult literature that most people are predominately honest telling lies only occasionally, while a few are prolific/chronic liars associated with other problem behaviors,” said Victoria Talwar, director of the Daniel and Monica Gold Centre for Early Childhood Development at McGill University’s Faculty of Education.
Theory of mind refers to the ability to understand that other people have different thoughts and beliefs than one’s own, while executive functioning involves mental skills like self-control and working memory.
“But we didn’t know how these trajectories develop,” Talwar said. “We didn’t have the connection between young childhood and adulthood. This data allowed us to look at how individuals lie-telling behavior changed or remained stable across childhood into early adulthood.”
To answer these questions, the scientists analyzed data from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Kindergarten Children. The sample included 3,017 francophone children living in Quebec, Canada. The group consisted of 47.2 percent girls and 52.8 percent boys who were around six years old when the study began. The participants included a representative group of 2,000 children and a specialized group of 1,017 children who had scored in the top tier for disruptive behaviors in kindergarten.
The researchers tracked the participants for sixteen years. Parents and teachers served as observers, reporting on the children’s lying behaviors at multiple points between the ages of six and nineteen. The adults used a simple three-point scale to rate the frequency of the children’s lies. They chose between “does not apply,” “occasional,” and “frequent.”
Parents also reported on the children’s aggressive behaviors at age six and again at age nineteen. They rated items such as fighting, biting, bullying, and destroying belongings. Teachers provided ratings of the children’s impulsivity at age twelve. This included assessing how often a child acted without thinking or sought attention by shouting.
When the participants reached age twenty-two, trained assistants conducted clinical interviews based on standardized psychiatric guidelines. They assessed the young adults for symptoms of antisocial personality disorder. This mental health condition involves a long-term pattern of manipulating, exploiting, or violating the rights of others, often accompanied by a lack of remorse. The researchers also gathered official juvenile and adult court records for the participants. These records covered criminal convictions between the ages of thirteen and twenty-five.
The scientists then used statistical grouping techniques to identify different pathways of lying behavior based on the parent and teacher reports. Because parents and teachers observe children in very different environments, the researchers analyzed the two sets of reports separately.
The teacher reports revealed three distinct pathways of lying behavior. The vast majority of the sample, comprising 73 percent of the children, fell into a “low lie-telling” group. These children displayed very low rates of lying at age seven, and this behavior declined to almost zero by age fifteen. A second group, making up 22 percent of the sample, followed an “increasing lie-telling” path. Their deception started higher than the first group and slowly climbed to an occasional rate by their mid-teens. A third group based on teacher reports showed a “declining lie-telling” pattern. This group made up 5 percent of the sample, starting with the highest rates of lying but dropping to near zero by age fifteen.
The parent reports also uncovered three unique behavioral pathways. The largest group, making up 58 percent of the children, showed an “occasional lying” pattern. According to parents, these children maintained a stable, moderate rate of lying from age six through age nineteen. Another 30 percent followed a “low lying” trajectory. These children started with low rates of deception that steadily dropped to near zero. The final 12 percent exhibited a “curvilinear lying” path. These children showed moderate lying at age six and experienced a peak in deception around ages eight to ten. After this peak, their rate of lying sharply declined toward zero by late adolescence.
Reflecting on the findings, Talwar noted that the results aligned with the researchers’ expectations. “In many ways this confirmed what we thought but had no evidence to know for sure,” she told PsyPost.
“Most children do not lie too much and tend to lie less as they grow up,” Talwar explained. “We found that the majority showed low or occasional lying and with trajectories that were either stable or declined. Frequent lying is not the norm, only a small minority show increasing or persistently higher levels over time. Thus Lying is typically common in childhood but for most not a sign of major problems for most children.”
The authors found that early problem behaviors predicted which lying path a child would follow. Children who displayed higher levels of aggression at age six were more likely to end up in the higher or increasing lie-telling groups. Similarly, children whom teachers rated as highly impulsive at age twelve were more likely to belong to the more deceptive groups compared to the low lie-telling groups.
“For a small group of children who had aggressiveness in childhood or more impulsivity at adolescence, they were more likely to follow higher-level lying trajectories,” Talwar said. “So problematic lying is often a part of broader pattern of behavioral difficulties, not an isolated issue.”
When examining adult outcomes, the researchers found that long-term patterns of lying were linked to future trouble. Based on teacher reports, the children in the increasing lie-telling group showed more symptoms of antisocial personality disorder in early adulthood than those in the low lie-telling group. They also had more violent and non-violent criminal convictions on their records.
Based on parent reports, the children in the stable, occasional lying group had the highest rates of adult aggression. This group also showed the highest rates of antisocial personality symptoms and criminal convictions. In contrast, children in the low or declining lying groups had the fewest adult criminal records and psychiatric symptoms.
“For those with persistent/higher lying, this predicted later problems: aggression, more symptoms of antisocial personality disorder, and higher rates of criminal behavior (though still generally low overall),” Talwar said. “So persistent, noticeable lying can be an early warning sign of later adjustment problems.”
The findings suggest that persistent lying, when observed alongside other behavioral issues, provides evidence of a trajectory toward maladaptive adult outcomes. “But the key take away for parents is: Most kids lie occasionally and grow out of it but persistent, escalating lying especially alongside behavioral problems can signal increased risk for later antisocial outcomes and warrants early support,” Talwar added.
There are a few potential misinterpretations and limitations to consider. The study relies on a simple three-point scale to measure lying. This broad categorization cannot capture the nuanced motivations behind a lie. It fails to distinguish between a malicious lie told for personal gain and a prosocial lie told to protect a friend’s feelings.
The measurement tool also does not capture the actual frequency of all lies told by the participants. Instead, parents and teachers can only report the lies they actually detect. Adults are notoriously poor at catching children in a lie. Because of this, the study primarily measures socially visible dishonesty rather than the absolute number of lies a child tells.
Talwar pointed out this constraint in the methodology. “These are lies as reported by parents and teachers, not self-reports (which is hard to do at a younger age) or behavioral paradigms,” she said. “Thus, there may be lies that parents or teachers did not catch and report.”
The sample also included a disproportionately large number of children who exhibited disruptive behavior in kindergarten. This overrepresentation might have made it easier to detect links between early behavioral problems and later criminal outcomes. The researchers also did not account for other outside factors. Variables such as a family’s socioeconomic status or untreated internalizing problems, like anxiety, could influence both childhood behavior and adult legal troubles.
Future research should attempt to measure lying using more precise and continuous scales. Scientists might also benefit from examining the specific types of lies children tell across different stages of development. Tracking individuals even further into adulthood could help clarify how childhood deception impacts long-term career success and personal relationships.
“This demonstrates that not all lying is the same,” Talwar said. “In the future, we hope to identify distinct subtypes of chronic lying and their different causes and outcomes. This will help us detect problematic trajectories early and design more effective interventions for early support.”
The study, “The long view: Lie-telling trajectories, ages 6 to 19 years,” was authored by Victoria Talwar, Angela M. Crossman, Kristy Robinson, Marie-Claude Geoffroy, Sylvana Côté, Richard Ernest Tremblay, and Frank Vitaro.
URL: https://www.psypost.org/a-16-year-study-reveals-how-childhood-lying-patterns-predict-adult-outcomes/
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #LieTellingTrajectories #ChildBehavior #LongitudinalStudy #AntisocialPersonality #DevelopmentalPsychology #ExecutiveFunction #TheoryOfMind #EarlyIntervention #CriminalBehaviorRisk #Psychopathology
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2/2
> "Trump trolled for bragging about 'dementia screening tool' he confused for IQ test"
Sir #TrumpVirus bragged again about his acing an "approved" #cognitive test. 120 perfect answers.
As widely pointed out, the took the same 30-item #dementia screen 4 times -
Same animals & simple tasks of #ExecutiveFunctionSome ask why he took the same "test" 4 times in a short period... Others ask why he thinks it's an IQ test, or invents that it showed #intelligence
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2/2
> "Trump trolled for bragging about 'dementia screening tool' he confused for IQ test"
Sir #TrumpVirus bragged again about his acing an "approved" #cognitive test. 120 perfect answers.
As widely pointed out, the took the same 30-item #dementia screen 4 times -
Same animals & simple tasks of #ExecutiveFunctionSome ask why he took the same "test" 4 times in a short period... Others ask why he thinks it's an IQ test, or invents that it showed #intelligence
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Meanwhile....
1/2
>"Trump trolled for bragging about 'dementia screening tool' he confused for IQ test"
Sir #TrumpVirus bragged again about his acing an "approved" #cognitive test. 120 perfect answers.
As widely pointed out, the took the same 30-item #dementia screen 4 times. Same animals and simple tasks of #ExecutiveFunction;
Some ask why he took the same 'test' 4 times in a short period... Others ask why he thinks it's an IQ test or that he's "intelligent".
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Meanwhile....
1/2
>"Trump trolled for bragging about 'dementia screening tool' he confused for IQ test"
Sir #TrumpVirus bragged again about his acing an "approved" #cognitive test. 120 perfect answers.
As widely pointed out, the took the same 30-item #dementia screen 4 times. Same animals and simple tasks of #ExecutiveFunction;
Some ask why he took the same 'test' 4 times in a short period... Others ask why he thinks it's an IQ test or that he's "intelligent".
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If you start a multi-step thing, get interrupted, and come back unable to tell which steps were already done: I built a browser app for that. One step at a time, holds your place. Works offline, no signup, data stays on your device. Currently free, no upsell in the app. If you try it, where does it miss the real problem?
#ADHD #Accessibility #ExecutiveFunction #Neurodivergent #PWA
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If you start a multi-step thing, get interrupted, and come back unable to tell which steps were already done: I built a browser app for that. One step at a time, holds your place. Works offline, no signup, data stays on your device. Currently free, no upsell in the app. If you try it, where does it miss the real problem?
#ADHD #Accessibility #ExecutiveFunction #Neurodivergent #PWA
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ADHD burnout makes starting tasks a massive hurdle. Action feels impossible. Dopamine plays a role. Reviews reject the simple deficiency model. Multiple brain systems falter. It isn't laziness. #ADHD #ExecutiveFunction #Burnout
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ADHD burnout makes starting tasks a massive hurdle. Action feels impossible. Dopamine plays a role. Reviews reject the simple deficiency model. Multiple brain systems falter. It isn't laziness. #ADHD #ExecutiveFunction #Burnout
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ADHD brains depend on environmental cues. To compensate for working memory limits, externalize tasks into a single visual space. This supports recall right at the point of action.
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Your to-do list doesn't fail because you lack discipline. It fails because it doesn't know you.
KOMPAS is an Obsidian system I'm building that learns from how you actually behave — tracking intervals between actions, surfacing tasks when they're due based on your own patterns. No rigid schedules. No guilt. A compass, not a whip.
Still early. Looking to connect with others rethinking self-management beyond "just get it together."
#Obsidian #SelfManagement #PKM #ExecutiveFunction #ADHD -
Your to-do list doesn't fail because you lack discipline. It fails because it doesn't know you.
KOMPAS is an Obsidian system I'm building that learns from how you actually behave — tracking intervals between actions, surfacing tasks when they're due based on your own patterns. No rigid schedules. No guilt. A compass, not a whip.
Still early. Looking to connect with others rethinking self-management beyond "just get it together."
#Obsidian #SelfManagement #PKM #ExecutiveFunction #ADHD -
"Oh, I'm in (a lot of) pain! That's why I want to puke and curl up."
#medMastodon #medicine #autistic #asperger #disabled #spoonie #chronicPain #ExecDysfunk #ExecutiveFunction #ExecutiveDysfunction
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"Oh, I'm in (a lot of) pain! That's why I want to puke and curl up."
#medMastodon #medicine #autistic #asperger #disabled #spoonie #chronicPain #ExecDysfunk #ExecutiveFunction #ExecutiveDysfunction
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PsyPost: Excessive TikTok use is linked to social anxiety and daily cognitive errors. “The researchers found that excessive use of the popular short video app acts as a bridge between underlying social anxieties and a person’s tendency to forget appointments or lose focus during daily tasks. These results shed light on how the specific design of modern social media platforms might influence […]
https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/18/psypost-excessive-tiktok-use-is-linked-to-social-anxiety-and-daily-cognitive-errors/ -
PsyPost: Excessive TikTok use is linked to social anxiety and daily cognitive errors. “The researchers found that excessive use of the popular short video app acts as a bridge between underlying social anxieties and a person’s tendency to forget appointments or lose focus during daily tasks. These results shed light on how the specific design of modern social media platforms might influence […]
https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/18/psypost-excessive-tiktok-use-is-linked-to-social-anxiety-and-daily-cognitive-errors/ -
Your brain avoids hard thinking on purpose. Across six experiments, people chose easier cognitive paths 67–73% of the time, even when the harder path was faster or more accurate. Mental effort has a cost. Your brain accounts for it whether you realize it or not.
#ExecutiveFunction #Productivity
Study: Kool, McGuire, Rosen & Botvinick (2010) — Decision Making and the Avoidance of Cognitive Demand https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020198 -
Working memory impairments are present in 75–81% of people with ADHD — with effect sizes 1.6–2x standard deviations below average.
That’s not a quirk. That’s a fundamentally different cognitive environment.
#ExecutiveFunction #ADHDStudy: Kofler et al. (2020) — Working memory and short-term memory deficits in ADHD: A bifactor modeling approach https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7483636/
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Every decision you make costs something. Ego depletion research shows willpower and decision quality draw from a shared, limited resource. The last task you tackle in a depleted session doesn’t stand a fair chance.
Study: Baumeister, Bratslavsky, Muraven & Tice (1998) — Ego depletion: Is the active self a limited resource? https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9599441/
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That important task that’s been sitting there for three days?
Your brain is telling you something. Persistent avoidance is data — about the task, not about you.
Listen before you push harder.
#TaskParalysis #ExecutiveFunctionStudy: Blunt & Pychyl (2000) — Task aversiveness and procrastination: A multi-dimensional approach to task aversiveness across stages of personal projects https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886999000914
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🧮➡️🗣️
The automation converts absolute time → relative time.Not: “Event at 2:30 PM.”
But: “Hey, you’ve got 15 minutes until Project Sync.”That shift removes so much cognitive load it’s ridiculous.
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“Just start” assumes you have access to your executive functions.
When you’re emotionally dysregulated, you often don’t. The bottleneck isn’t motivation — it’s access.
#ExecutiveFunction #DecisionParalysis -
With ADHD, choosing what to play can feel heavier than actually playing.
It’s not about having too many games.
It’s about matching mood, energy, and cognitive load to the right kind of experience.I started using ChatGPT not for recommendations, but to structure the decision:
– Do I want to think or react?
– Can I handle learning systems tonight?
– Do I need drop safety? -
With ADHD, choosing what to play can feel heavier than actually playing.
It’s not about having too many games.
It’s about matching mood, energy, and cognitive load to the right kind of experience.I started using ChatGPT not for recommendations, but to structure the decision:
– Do I want to think or react?
– Can I handle learning systems tonight?
– Do I need drop safety? -
How to Foster Problem-Solving Skills in Your Baby: A Science-Backed Guide for Parents
Science-backed guide for parents: Discover how to nurture your baby's problem-solving skills from infancy. Learn practical strategies, from responsive parenting to creative play, that build a foundation for lifelong learning and resilience. Start fostering critical thinking today. -
How to Foster Problem-Solving Skills in Your Baby: A Science-Backed Guide for Parents
Science-backed guide for parents: Discover how to nurture your baby's problem-solving skills from infancy. Learn practical strategies, from responsive parenting to creative play, that build a foundation for lifelong learning and resilience. Start fostering critical thinking today. -
4 Ways Childhood Trauma Physically Changes a Man’s Brain
Originally Published on January 13th, 2026 at 10:23 amIntroduction: More Than a Memory
It is widely understood that childhood trauma, particularly childhood sexual abuse (CSA), leaves deep and lasting psychological scars.
The experience can shape a person’s emotional landscape for a lifetime. It can lead to challenges like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety. For many, the impact feels profound, but the injury itself can seem invisible.
But what if the damage wasn’t just psychological? What if the trauma left a physical, measurable imprint on the very structure of the brain? A new brain imaging study provides compelling evidence that this is exactly what happens.
The research focuses specifically on the long-term neurophysiological effects of CSA in men. We know this is a topic that remains heavily stigmatized and under-researched. Despite its prevalence, with approximately 1 in 25 men in Canada experiencing sexual abuse before age 15 (Heidinger, 2022), the physical toll it takes has been poorly understood until now.
This study begins to change that.
1. Childhood Trauma Physically Alters the Brain’s “Communication Highways”
The researchers used a specialized MRI technique called Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI). DTI looks deep inside the brain’s white matter.
You can think of white matter as the brain’s internal communication wiring or its information superhighways. White matter consists of bundles of nerve fibers that connect different brain regions and allow them to work together seamlessly.
The study measured a key property of this wiring called “fractional anisotropy” (FA). In simple terms, FA is a measure of the integrity and efficiency of these communication pathways.
Higher FA values indicate well-organized, healthy wiring. While lower values suggest the wiring may be less organized, frayed, or poorly insulated, leading to disrupted signaling.
The study’s core finding was unequivocal: the group of men with a history of CSA had significantly lower FA values in multiple key brain regions compared to the control group. This provides clear physical proof that the trauma fundamentally rewired the brain’s architecture.
2. The Damage Targets Critical Hubs for Emotion, Memory, and Executive Function
The study revealed that the structural changes were not random. They were concentrated in white matter tracts that are critical for regulating the very functions that many survivors struggle with.
The specific regions affected include:
- The Superior Longitudinal Fasciculus (SLF): This massive tract showed the largest effect. A finding with a statistical effect size (Cohen’s d = 1.902) so large it indicates a profound difference between the groups. The damage was most pronounced in a segment called SLF II. This connects key hubs for attention and memory to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), a critical command center for executive function. This provides a direct neurobiological link explaining why a survivor might struggle with daily tasks like concentrating at work or managing complex projects.
- The Cingulum: As a key part of the brain’s limbic system, the cingulum is a hub for processing emotion, behavior, and memory. Damage here has been previously linked to PTSD and depression. This offers a biological reason for the persistent feelings of anxiety or the intrusive memories that can define a survivor’s experience.
- The Anterior Thalamic Radiation and Forceps Minor: These tracts are essential wiring for the frontal lobe, supporting executive functions like planning complex behaviors and impulse control. Compromised integrity in these pathways can help explain difficulties with emotional regulation and decision-making that survivors often report.
In short, the brain scans reveal a physical roadmap of the injury, showing that the damage isn’t random. It targets the very systems that survivors rely on to regulate emotion, process memory, and maintain focus.
Are you exploring your trauma? Do you feel your childhood experiences were detrimental to your current mental or physical health? Utilize this free, validated, self-report questionnaire to find out.
Take the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) Questionnaire
3. Structural Damage from Childhood Trauma Helps Explain Real-World Cognitive Emotional Challenges
One of the most powerful aspects of this research is how it connects the brain’s physical structure to its real-time function.
Some of the same men who participated in this DTI study also took part in another study that used a functional MRI (fMRI) to see how their brains worked during a challenging mental task (Chiasson et al., 2021).
That fMRI study found that when performing an emotional working memory task, the men with CSA histories showed altered brain activation patterns.
Instead of relying on their dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), the brain’s executive control center, they showed increased activation in limbic areas, the brain’s emotional hub.
This new DTI study provides a compelling physical explanation for why. The structural damage to the Superior Longitudinal Fasciculus (SLF II), the “highway” that leads directly to the dlPFC, helps explain why that executive control center was less active. The damaged road was unable to carry the traffic. It forced the brain to create functional “detours” through more emotional pathways. It directly links the physical brain changes to the functional difficulties survivors experience.
4. This Evidence is a Powerful Tool Against Stigma Around Male Childhood Trauma
For male survivors of CSA, stigma and shame often create immense barriers to seeking help. This research offers a powerful tool to fight that stigma.
Having objective, empirical evidence that trauma causes a tangible, neurophysiological injury helps reframe the survivor’s experience.
It is not “just in their head” or a sign of weakness; it is a physical injury that requires understanding and clinical support.
The study’s authors highlight this crucial implication in their conclusion:
“Raising awareness of the impact of CSA is crucial—not only to help destigmatize the topic and encourage more men to seek help, but also to equip clinicians with a better understanding of CSA’s neuro-physiological effects, ultimately contributing to more effective interventions and improved treatment outcomes.”
By demonstrating the physical reality of traumatic injury, this research helps move the conversation around male CSA away from silence and stigma and toward one of scientific understanding, compassion, and informed care.
Conclusion: A Deeper Understanding of Healing
This study offers a stark and clear message: childhood trauma is a profound event that can physically reshape the brain’s architecture.
For men who have survived childhood sexual abuse, this research provides concrete, scientific validation of their experience. It shows that the challenges they face are rooted in tangible changes to the brain’s white matter.
The findings underscore that healing from trauma is not merely a psychological exercise but a process that involves a brain that has been physically altered.
As we continue to uncover the deep nature of traumatic injury, it prompts a vital question for us all:
How might this change our approach to healing, compassion, and justice for survivors?
Does this ring true for you or someone you love? Share how this article shined a light on behaviors you hadn’t previously understood in the comments below.
Are you a professional looking to stay up-to-date with the latest information on, sex addiction, trauma, and mental health news and research? Or maybe you’re looking for continuing education courses? Then you should stay up-to-date with all of Dr. Jen’s work through her practice’s newsletter!
Do you feel your sexual behavior, or that of someone you love, is out of control? Then you should consult with a professional.
Have you found yourself in legal trouble due to your sexual behavior? Seek assistance before the court mandates it, with Sexual Addiction Treatment Services.
#ACEs #adverseChildhoodExperiences #anxiety #brainImaging #childhoodSexualAbuse #childhoodTrauma #complexTrauma #CSA #depression #diffusionTensorImaging #DTI #emotionalRegulation #executiveFunction #healingAndRecovery #maleSurvivors #menSMentalHealth #mentalHealthEducation #neurobiologyOfTrauma #neuroscience #PTSD #stigma #traumaAndTheBrain #traumaInformedCare #whiteMatter -
4 Ways Childhood Trauma Physically Changes a Man’s Brain
Originally Published on January 13th, 2026 at 10:23 amIntroduction: More Than a Memory
It is widely understood that childhood trauma, particularly childhood sexual abuse (CSA), leaves deep and lasting psychological scars.
The experience can shape a person’s emotional landscape for a lifetime. It can lead to challenges like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety. For many, the impact feels profound, but the injury itself can seem invisible.
But what if the damage wasn’t just psychological? What if the trauma left a physical, measurable imprint on the very structure of the brain? A new brain imaging study provides compelling evidence that this is exactly what happens.
The research focuses specifically on the long-term neurophysiological effects of CSA in men. We know this is a topic that remains heavily stigmatized and under-researched. Despite its prevalence, with approximately 1 in 25 men in Canada experiencing sexual abuse before age 15 (Heidinger, 2022), the physical toll it takes has been poorly understood until now.
This study begins to change that.
1. Childhood Trauma Physically Alters the Brain’s “Communication Highways”
The researchers used a specialized MRI technique called Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI). DTI looks deep inside the brain’s white matter.
You can think of white matter as the brain’s internal communication wiring or its information superhighways. White matter consists of bundles of nerve fibers that connect different brain regions and allow them to work together seamlessly.
The study measured a key property of this wiring called “fractional anisotropy” (FA). In simple terms, FA is a measure of the integrity and efficiency of these communication pathways.
Higher FA values indicate well-organized, healthy wiring. While lower values suggest the wiring may be less organized, frayed, or poorly insulated, leading to disrupted signaling.
The study’s core finding was unequivocal: the group of men with a history of CSA had significantly lower FA values in multiple key brain regions compared to the control group. This provides clear physical proof that the trauma fundamentally rewired the brain’s architecture.
2. The Damage Targets Critical Hubs for Emotion, Memory, and Executive Function
The study revealed that the structural changes were not random. They were concentrated in white matter tracts that are critical for regulating the very functions that many survivors struggle with.
The specific regions affected include:
- The Superior Longitudinal Fasciculus (SLF): This massive tract showed the largest effect. A finding with a statistical effect size (Cohen’s d = 1.902) so large it indicates a profound difference between the groups. The damage was most pronounced in a segment called SLF II. This connects key hubs for attention and memory to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), a critical command center for executive function. This provides a direct neurobiological link explaining why a survivor might struggle with daily tasks like concentrating at work or managing complex projects.
- The Cingulum: As a key part of the brain’s limbic system, the cingulum is a hub for processing emotion, behavior, and memory. Damage here has been previously linked to PTSD and depression. This offers a biological reason for the persistent feelings of anxiety or the intrusive memories that can define a survivor’s experience.
- The Anterior Thalamic Radiation and Forceps Minor: These tracts are essential wiring for the frontal lobe, supporting executive functions like planning complex behaviors and impulse control. Compromised integrity in these pathways can help explain difficulties with emotional regulation and decision-making that survivors often report.
In short, the brain scans reveal a physical roadmap of the injury, showing that the damage isn’t random. It targets the very systems that survivors rely on to regulate emotion, process memory, and maintain focus.
Are you exploring your trauma? Do you feel your childhood experiences were detrimental to your current mental or physical health? Utilize this free, validated, self-report questionnaire to find out.
Take the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) Questionnaire
3. Structural Damage from Childhood Trauma Helps Explain Real-World Cognitive Emotional Challenges
One of the most powerful aspects of this research is how it connects the brain’s physical structure to its real-time function.
Some of the same men who participated in this DTI study also took part in another study that used a functional MRI (fMRI) to see how their brains worked during a challenging mental task (Chiasson et al., 2021).
That fMRI study found that when performing an emotional working memory task, the men with CSA histories showed altered brain activation patterns.
Instead of relying on their dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), the brain’s executive control center, they showed increased activation in limbic areas, the brain’s emotional hub.
This new DTI study provides a compelling physical explanation for why. The structural damage to the Superior Longitudinal Fasciculus (SLF II), the “highway” that leads directly to the dlPFC, helps explain why that executive control center was less active. The damaged road was unable to carry the traffic. It forced the brain to create functional “detours” through more emotional pathways. It directly links the physical brain changes to the functional difficulties survivors experience.
4. This Evidence is a Powerful Tool Against Stigma Around Male Childhood Trauma
For male survivors of CSA, stigma and shame often create immense barriers to seeking help. This research offers a powerful tool to fight that stigma.
Having objective, empirical evidence that trauma causes a tangible, neurophysiological injury helps reframe the survivor’s experience.
It is not “just in their head” or a sign of weakness; it is a physical injury that requires understanding and clinical support.
The study’s authors highlight this crucial implication in their conclusion:
“Raising awareness of the impact of CSA is crucial—not only to help destigmatize the topic and encourage more men to seek help, but also to equip clinicians with a better understanding of CSA’s neuro-physiological effects, ultimately contributing to more effective interventions and improved treatment outcomes.”
By demonstrating the physical reality of traumatic injury, this research helps move the conversation around male CSA away from silence and stigma and toward one of scientific understanding, compassion, and informed care.
Conclusion: A Deeper Understanding of Healing
This study offers a stark and clear message: childhood trauma is a profound event that can physically reshape the brain’s architecture.
For men who have survived childhood sexual abuse, this research provides concrete, scientific validation of their experience. It shows that the challenges they face are rooted in tangible changes to the brain’s white matter.
The findings underscore that healing from trauma is not merely a psychological exercise but a process that involves a brain that has been physically altered.
As we continue to uncover the deep nature of traumatic injury, it prompts a vital question for us all:
How might this change our approach to healing, compassion, and justice for survivors?
Does this ring true for you or someone you love? Share how this article shined a light on behaviors you hadn’t previously understood in the comments below.
Are you a professional looking to stay up-to-date with the latest information on, sex addiction, trauma, and mental health news and research? Or maybe you’re looking for continuing education courses? Then you should stay up-to-date with all of Dr. Jen’s work through her practice’s newsletter!
Do you feel your sexual behavior, or that of someone you love, is out of control? Then you should consult with a professional.
Have you found yourself in legal trouble due to your sexual behavior? Seek assistance before the court mandates it, with Sexual Addiction Treatment Services.
#ACEs #adverseChildhoodExperiences #anxiety #brainImaging #childhoodSexualAbuse #childhoodTrauma #complexTrauma #CSA #depression #diffusionTensorImaging #DTI #emotionalRegulation #executiveFunction #healingAndRecovery #maleSurvivors #menSMentalHealth #mentalHealthEducation #neurobiologyOfTrauma #neuroscience #PTSD #stigma #traumaAndTheBrain #traumaInformedCare #whiteMatter -
In an executive frame of mind today - which doesn’t happen often
Plant out leeks before it rains - They’ll never grow: too late in the season
Help prepare for charity Christmas card sale at church tomorrow, sweep yew berries off path & cut brambles (talk about slaying the dragon; appropriate for Michaelmas)
Spend afternoon sending invoices to the church treasurer re paper towels, organ tuning, cess pit emptying, etc etc
I think I’m due a relapse
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CW: good thread on ADHD
... and trying to do things! How can it sometimes be so hard!
from @astronomerritt and others:
https://hachyderm.io/@astronomerritt/115294744777518641
(As far as I know, I don't have ADHD, but I do have intermittent "want to do the thing, trouble actually doing it" issues, which make ADHD insights relatable to me :-) )
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ADHD isn’t just about distraction—it’s about dopamine.
Deep work isn’t impossible for ADHDers, but it requires a different model. How we can stop mimicking neurotypical focus systems and build ones that actually work for us.
https://pedroinnecco.com/2025/07/deep-work-with-adhd-why-focus-isnt-the-full-story/
#ADHD #DeepWork #Neurodiversity #ProductivityTips #ExecutiveFunction #WorkSmarter
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I ask "would I pay to move this?" having moved a few times - keeping this tip in mind!
This Viral "#Poop Rule" Is Highly Resonating With ADHDers. This Is Why Therapists Say It Actually Works. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/articles/viral-poop-rule-highly-resonating-233103145.html
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https://realsocial.life/@RosProject/114826629710658412
I am finally posting initial results of my attempt on #neurodivergent #executiveFunction aids
I am using the app #grit and regular planners and journals to help some of the problems of #adhd .
I usually can't use schedulers and stuff, but this technique has been working for me for a while, so please give me feedback if it works for you.
Thanks.
