Full PreFrontal: Exposing the Mysteries of Executive Function

Send us a textThe game of Chutes and Ladders, originally invented in India and known for the snakes instead of chutes, is a great allegory for life. With the luck of the draw, you get a leg up when you land on the ladder only to be taken down a several notches often to an irretraceable set back. It takes a lot of mental maneuvering and an executive control to handle the frustration of sliding down from 87 to 24 and to patiently wait to rise up again or watch others win. And it’s true wisdom to not lose sight that after all, it’s just a game! On this podcast, our guest, Dr. Ronald D. Siegel, a renowned author, psychotherapist, and great teacher of mindfulness practices will discuss how mindful self-regulation is the seat of resiliency and how it allows us to gain a sense of equilibrium.About Dr. Ronald SiegelDr. Ronald D. Siegel is an Assistant Professor of Psychology, part time, at Harvard Medical School, where he has taught for over 35 years. He is a long-time student of mindfulness meditation and serves on the Board of Directors and faculty of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. He teaches internationally about the application of mindfulness practice in psychotherapy and other fields, and maintains a private clinical practice in Lincoln, Massachusetts.Dr. Siegel is coeditor of the critically acclaimed text, Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, 2nd Edition; author of a comprehensive guide for general audiences, The Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday Problems; coeditor of Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy: Deepening Mindfulness in Clinical Practice, with a foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama; coauthor of the professional guide Sitting Together: Essential Skills for Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy; coauthor of the self-treatment guide Back Sense: A Revolutionary Approach to Halting the Cycle of Chronic Back Pain, which integrates Western and Eastern approaches for treating chronic back pain; and professor for The Science of Mindfulness: A Research-Based Path to Well-Being produced by The Great Courses. He is also a regular contributor to other professional publications, and is co-director of the annual Harvard Medical School Conference on Meditation and Psychotherapy.BookThe Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday ProblemsResourcesFor recordings of mindfulness practice instructions, including meditations for working with anxiety, depression, relationship issues, addictions, and other difficulties, please visit www.mindfulness-solution.comFor additional recorded meditations, and patient handouts, please visit  www.sittingtogether.comFor information about mindfulness and psychotherapy programs, please visit  www.meditationandpsychotherapy.orgFor information about the Back Sense program for treating chronic back pain, please visit www.backsense.orgGreat Courses – The Science of Mindfulness: A Research-Based Path to Well-Being by Dr. Ronald D. Siegel https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/the-positive-mind-mindfulness-and-the-science-of-happiness.htmlAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leaderSupport the show

Send us a textWorld-class athletes, politicians, artists, and even entrepreneurs have fallen from grace because of their personal salacious digressions or public tantrums. The talent that makes them rich and famous is not the same talent that helps them ward off the chaos in their vulnerable mind. The emotional brain is inherently wired to duck from social perils or to protect itself from the painful misery of negative experiences. If mindlessness is at the heart of impulsive, silly, or even dumb mistakes then it's the well-cultivated mindfulness that insulates the human being from thoughtless words, judgmental attitudes, or harmful actions. On today’s podcast, our guest Dr. Ronald D. Siegel from Harvard University and author of Essential Skills for Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy, will discuss the link between emotional-regulation and Executive Function and the path to well-being through mindfulness.About Dr. Ronald SiegelDr. Ronald D. Siegel is an Assistant Professor of Psychology, part time, at Harvard Medical School, where he has taught for over 35 years. He is a long-time student of mindfulness meditation and serves on the Board of Directors and faculty of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. He teaches internationally about the application of mindfulness practice in psychotherapy and other fields, and maintains a private clinical practice in Lincoln, Massachusetts.Dr. Siegel is coeditor of the critically acclaimed text, Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, 2nd Edition; author of a comprehensive guide for general audiences, The Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday Problems; coeditor of Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy: Deepening Mindfulness in Clinical Practice, with a foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama; coauthor of the professional guide Sitting Together: Essential Skills for Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy; coauthor of the self-treatment guide Back Sense: A Revolutionary Approach to Halting the Cycle of Chronic Back Pain, which integrates Western and Eastern approaches for treating chronic back pain; and professor for The Science of Mindfulness: A Research-Based Path to Well-Being produced by The Great Courses. He is also a regular contributor to other professional publications, and is co-director of the annual Harvard Medical School Conference on Meditation and Psychotherapy.BookThe Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday ProblemsResourcesFor recordings of mindfulness practice instructions, including meditations for working with anxiety, depression, relationship issues, addictions, and other difficulties, please visit www.mindfulness-solution.comFor additional recorded meditations, and patient handouts, please visit  www.sittingtogether.comFor information about mindfulness and psychotherapy programs, please visit  www.meditationandpsychotherapy.orgFor information about the Back Sense program for treating chronic back pain, please visit www.backsense.orgGreat Courses – The Science of Mindfulness: A Research-Based Path to Well-Being by Dr. Ronald D. Siegel https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/the-positive-mind-mindfulness-and-the-science-of-happiness.htmlAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winningSupport the show

Send us a textWould you be willing to head-butt a ram for an icy cold bottle of Mountain Dew? That’s the kind of lighthearted foolery that got a lot of laughs during a Super Bowl commercial one year. At the end, we see the young man sipping from the winning drink, but you’re not quite sure if he is okay because you can hear a stutter in his speech as he staggers away in a disoriented haze. Even though our precious brain comes in a special protective casing, not everyone is lucky enough to keep it safe from harm. Whether it is a tiny bump, a big jolt, or a hard blow to head, the result can often be life altering. This episode, my guest, Professor Jerry Hoepner, will discuss the art and science of neurorehabilitation after a traumatic brain injury and its relationship with executive function and real-world functioning.About Jerry Hoepner, Ph.D.Jerry Hoepner, Ph.D., CCC-SLP is an Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. He teaches coursework in adult neurogenics, including Anatomy & Physiology, Neuroanatomy & Physiology, Aphasia, Acquired Cognitive Disorders, Dysphagia, and Counseling. He is co-developer of the UW Systems SoTL Think Tank, an annual disciplinary consortium of faculty interested in evidence based instruction and scholarship of teaching and learning research. He is a founding editor and editor-at-large of the Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences and Disorders (TLCSD) journal. Jerry’s teaching research focuses on non-course based learningopportunities, pedagogy, and training CSD students as educators. This research has been published in a variety of journals, including: the Journal of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology.He also remains active in clinical research, including student and camper outcomes at the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Camp, social networking applications for individuals with aphasia, Video Self-Modeling interventions for individuals with acquired cognitive disorders, and communication partner training. This research has been published in a variety of journals including Brain Injury, Aphasiology, and the Journal of Interactional Research in Communication Sciences and Disorders. In addition, Dr. Hoepner has published several chapters in edited texts. He remains active in community programming for individuals living with traumatic brain injuries and those living with aphasia, including being a co-founder of the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group, Chippewa Valley Aphasia Camp, Mayo Mild Brain Injury Group, and Blugold Brain Injury Group.BookSelect Chapters in A Clinician’s Guide to Successful Evaluation and Treatment of DementiaDigital SeminarCognitive Rehabilitation: Therapeutic Strategies for Effective InterventionAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show

Send us a textIn NBC’s award winning series, This is Us, Mandy Moore’s character Becca, a new mother of three, leaves the house for the first time after the childbirth to buy groceries so that she can make something special for her husband, Jack. Ordinarily, Becca plays by the book and goes with the flow but an encounter where another shopper grabs the last bag of yellow onions that Becca wanted for herself leads to a massive meltdown. One can clearly see what happens when the demands on a capable and caring person like Rebecca exceeds her capacity as woman who’s recovering from postnatal blues and warding off the unlimited pressure of raising babies. This episode, my guest, Professor Jerry Hoepner, will talk about the daily tug of war where a novel context causes a seismic shift in the demands and deterioration in the performance as it exceeds capacity.About Jerry Hoepner, Ph.D.Jerry Hoepner, Ph.D., CCC-SLP is an Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. He teaches coursework in adult neurogenics, including Anatomy & Physiology, Neuroanatomy & Physiology, Aphasia, Acquired Cognitive Disorders, Dysphagia, and Counseling. He is co-developer of the UW Systems SoTL Think Tank, an annual disciplinary consortium of faculty interested in evidence based instruction and scholarship of teaching and learning research. He is a founding editor and editor-at-large of the Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences and Disorders (TLCSD) journal. Jerry’s teaching research focuses on non-course based learningopportunities, pedagogy, and training CSD students as educators. This research has been published in a variety of journals, including: the Journal of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology.He also remains active in clinical research, including student and camper outcomes at the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Camp, social networking applications for individuals with aphasia, Video Self-Modeling interventions for individuals with acquired cognitive disorders, and communication partner training. This research has been published in a variety of journals including Brain Injury, Aphasiology, and the Journal of Interactional Research in Communication Sciences and Disorders. In addition, Dr. Hoepner has published several chapters in edited texts. He remains active in community programming for individuals living with traumatic brain injuries and those living with aphasia, including being a co-founder of the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group, Chippewa Valley Aphasia Camp, Mayo Mild Brain Injury Group, and Blugold Brain Injury Group.BookSelect Chapters in A Clinician’s Guide to Successful Evaluation and Treatment of DementiaDigital SeminarCognitive Rehabilitation: Therapeutic Strategies for Effective InterventionAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show

Send us a textWhat’s the difference between blowing bubbles in the yard, watching a drunk shovel snow in a shopping cart, and listening to Rodney Dangerfield deliver a monologue? The first one is fun, the second one is funny, but only Rodney Dangerfield’s one-liners makes you laugh every time. It takes Executive Function skills such as adapting off-stage comedic talent to the stand-up comedy environment, restructuring the jokes, and adjusting your timing to succeed in the business of entertainment. But talented individuals with ADHD experience everyday chaos as their lives are riddled with a lot of mismanagement, impulsivity, and poor decision-making. This makes it difficult to let the talents be discovered or actualized. This episode, in a candid interview, my client, Karate (Kate) Wellington, talks about finding a home in comedy and entertainment and how her creativity has always managed to surface and give her hope in spite of the painful realization that ADHD is there to stay and Executive Dysfunction is a beast that needs to be tamed. See how Kate has come to acknowledge that the secret of finessing her progress as a comedian lies in mastering her Executive Function.About Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show

Send us a textTaking care of children by feeding them, protecting them, and loving them is not the same as preparing them for their future. American education has been through an evolutionary process; which is just a few centuries old and the quest is yet to be fulfilled. We forget, a century ago, attending school past age 12 was not mandatory, the classrooms were often filled with 50-60 kids of varying ages and demanding kids to recite and regurgitate facts was a standard practice. Forecasting the needs of tomorrow continues to be an enigma in spite of the rapidly evolving information technology age and serving the needs of all types of learners continues to be as opaque as ever. This episode, my guest, Dr. Sam Goldstein, a clinical neuropsychologist, will discuss how to rethink educating self-sufficient students with Executive Function at the heart of learning.About Sam Goldstein, Ph.D.Sam Goldstein, Ph.D. ABPdN is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine.  He is Clinical Director of the Neurology Learning and Behavior Center.  Dr. Goldstein has authored fifty books as well as over three dozen book chapters and thirty research articles. He has also co-authored six psychological tests. He currently serves as Editor in Chief of the Journal of Attention Disorders and sits on the editorial boards of six peer reviewed journals. Currently he has three books and four psychological tests in development.Websiteswww.samgoldstein.comBooksHandbook of Executive FunctioningRecommended BooksPromoting Executive Function in the Classroom by Lynn MeltzerAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show

Send us a textIf you’re trying to bum a cigarette from someone outside a bar after midnight be prepared for them to say no. Talented actor, Shia Lebeouf, wasn’t prepared. Ironically, he who has painstakingly portrayed Tennis’ tempestuous bad-boy, John McEnroe, in “Borg vs McEnroe,” himself has been arrested one time too many for emotional volatility, impulsivity, and disorderly conduct. Not everyone has strong executive function to circumvent life’s obstacles with grace. Today, my guest, Dr. Sam Goldstein, a clinical neuropsychologist, will discuss how Executive Function helps us negotiate everyday bumps and insulates us from bad decisions and self-destruction.About Sam Goldstein, Ph.D.Sam Goldstein, Ph.D. ABPdN is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine.  He is Clinical Director of the Neurology Learning and Behavior Center.  Dr. Goldstein has authored fifty books as well as over three dozen book chapters and thirty research articles. He has also co-authored six psychological tests. He currently serves as Editor in Chief of the Journal of Attention Disorders and sits on the editorial boards of six peer reviewed journals. Currently he has three books and four psychological tests in development.Websiteswww.samgoldstein.comBooksHandbook of Executive FunctioningRecommended BooksPromoting Executive Function in the Classroom by Lynn MeltzerAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show

Send us a textThe creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groening, once described Homer Simpson as “a loving father but he’s ruled by his impulses”.  Homer often comes across more of a juvenile adult than a parent; never quite equipped to handle Bart’s bratty behaviors or Lisa’s intellectual curiosity. In spite of being endowed, the virtuous, talented, and sensitive middle child Lisa is often ignored in the Simpsons household. As it is, parenting is hard but it’s even harder to tailor it to an individual child’s needs. Today, my guest, Dr. Stephanie Carlson, in her second interview will expatiate on how certain type of parenting can be instrumental in raising autonomous children who learn to temper their behaviors and emotions into resiliency.About Stephanie Carlson, Ph.D.Stephanie is currently a Distinguished McKnight University Professor and Director of Research at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, and Co-founder and CEO of Reflection Sciences, Inc. Dr. Carlson is a developmental psychologist and internationally recognized leader in the measurement of executive function in preschool children. She conducts research on ways to promote the healthy development of EF in children and their caregivers. Her work has received continuous funding since 2002 from federal agencies and non-profit foundations, including the National Institutes of Health, Institute of Education Sciences, John Templeton Foundation, and the Character Lab. Dr. Carlson’s research is highly cited and has been featured in several media outlets, including Time, New York Times Magazine, and National Public Radio.EducationB.A. (summa cum laude) with Honors in Psychology, Bucknell University (1991)Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology, University of Oregon (1997)Organizations & MembershipsDr. Carlson is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. She has served on several editorial boards, as Vice President of the Jean Piaget Society, and as an advisor to Transforming Education, the Minnesota Children’s Museum, Sesame Workshop, Playworks.org, and Understood.org. She has been nominated as a “Favorite Professor” by undergraduates and is frequently invited to speak at national and international meetings.WebsitesReflection SciencesInstitute of Child DevelopmentBooksSera, M., Maratsos, M., & Carlson, S. M. (Eds.) (2016). Culture and developmental systems. New York: Wiley.ArticlesCarlson, S. M., Claxton, L. J., & Moses, L. J. (2015). The relation between executive function and theory of mind is more than skin deep. Journal of Cognition and Development. 16, 186-197. doi: 10.1080/15248372.2013.824883Lee, W. S. C., & Carlson, S. M. (2015). Knowing when to be “rational:” Economic decision-making and executive function in preschool children. Child Development, 86, 1434-1448. doi: 10.1111/cdev.12401Meuwissen, A. S., & Carlson, S. M. (2015). Fathers matter: The role of father parenting in preschool children’s executive function. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 140, 1-15.White, R. E., Prager, E. O., Schaefer, C., Kross, E., Duckworth, A. L., & Carlson, S. M. (2017). The “Batman Effect:” Improving perseveranceSupport the show

Send us a textWhen, “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” hit the bookstores in 1984, authors Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel had no idea that their book would become a bible for expectant parents and it would top the Best Seller’s list for years to come. Even though the parents’ search to figure out the mysteries of parenting does not dwindle once the baby is born; it surely gets complicated and there is no single book that guides parent to raise self-disciplined children. Today, my guest Dr. Stephanie Carlson, will demystify Executive Function and children’s capacities to successfully self-regulate their thoughts, feelings, and actions to function autonomously and independently by pausing for reflection.About Stephanie Carlson, Ph.D.Stephanie is currently a Distinguished McKnight University Professor and Director of Research at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, and Co-founder and CEO of Reflection Sciences, Inc. Dr. Carlson is a developmental psychologist and internationally recognized leader in the measurement of executive function in preschool children. She conducts research on ways to promote the healthy development of EF in children and their caregivers. Her work has received continuous funding since 2002 from federal agencies and non-profit foundations, including the National Institutes of Health, Institute of Education Sciences, John Templeton Foundation, and the Character Lab. Dr. Carlson’s research is highly cited and has been featured in several media outlets, including Time, New York Times Magazine, and National Public Radio.EducationB.A. (summa cum laude) with Honors in Psychology, Bucknell University (1991)Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology, University of Oregon (1997)Organizations & MembershipsDr. Carlson is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. She has served on several editorial boards, as Vice President of the Jean Piaget Society, and as an advisor to Transforming Education, the Minnesota Children’s Museum, Sesame Workshop, Playworks.org, and Understood.org. She has been nominated as a “Favorite Professor” by undergraduates and is frequently invited to speak at national and international meetings.WebsitesReflection SciencesInstitute of Child DevelopmentBooksSera, M., Maratsos, M., & Carlson, S. M. (Eds.) (2016). Culture and developmental systems. New York: Wiley.ArticlesCarlson, S. M., Claxton, L. J., & Moses, L. J. (2015). The relation between executive function and theory of mind is more than skin deep. Journal of Cognition and Development. 16, 186-197. doi: 10.1080/15248372.2013.824883Lee, W. S. C., & Carlson, S. M. (2015). Knowing when to be “rational:” Economic decision-making and executive function in preschool children. Child Development, 86, 1434-1448. doi: 10.1111/cdev.12401Meuwissen, A. S., & Carlson, S. M. (2015). Fathers matter: The role of father parenting in preschool children’s executive function. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 140, 1-15.White, R. E., Prager, E. O., Schaefer, C., Kross, E., Duckworth, A. L., & Carlson, S. M. (2017). The “Batman Effect:” Improving perseverance in young children. Child DevSupport the show

Send us a textThe end of the year inventory often reveals a track record of failed diets, disorganization, and an ever-so thinning bank balance which is why a recent poll suggested that "lose weight," "get organized," and "spend less money" are the top 3 New Year’s resolutions. To change your ways upon self-reflection you need strong Executive Function skills. It’s the self-aware people who create attainable and reasonable New Year’s resolutions, but better yet, it is the self-regulated people who see them through. Striving to better oneself means developing a better relationship with yourself and cultivating strong habits. Today, my guest, Phil Zelazo, Ph.D. discusses how parents and teachers can promote the development of strong Executive Function and how better regulated members of the classroom, household, or community foster better, more modulated responses – which is the true foundation of a harmonious society.About Philip Zelazo, Ph.D.Philip David Zelazo (PhD, Yale, 1993) is currently the Nancy M. and John E. Lindahl Professor at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota.  He was previously on the faculty in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto, where he held the Canada Research Chair in Developmental Neuroscience.  Professor Zelazo’s research has helped shape current scientific understanding of executive function and its development, including the key roles of reflection, rule use, hierarchical complexity, mindfulness, and emotion (hot versus cool EF). This work has led to the design of widely used standardized measures of EF skills (e.g., the NIH Toolbox measures of EF) and to the creation of effective interventions for promoting the healthy development of EF in early childhood.  Professor Zelazo’s research has been honored by numerous awards, including a Boyd McCandless Young Scientist Award from the American Psychological Association (APA), and a Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 Award. He is a Fellow of APA, the Association for Psychological Science (APS); Senior Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute; and Scientific Advisor for Vroom and Understood.org. He serves on numerous editorial boards (e.g., Development and Psychopathology), was lead editor of the Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness (2007) and was editor of the two-volume Oxford Handbook of Developmental Psychology (2013).Websiteshttp://www.cehd.umn.edu/icd/people/faculty/Zelazo.htmlBooksBudwig, N., Turiel, E., & Zelazo, P. D. (2017). New perspectives on human development. New York: Cambridge University Press.Zelazo, P. D., & Sera, M. (2013). Developing cognitive control processes: Mechanisms, implications, interventions. New York: Wiley.Zelazo, P. D. (2013). The Oxford handbookAbout Host, Sucheta KamathSucheta Kamath, is an award-winning speech-language pathologist, a TEDx speaker, a celebrated community leader, and the founder and CEO of ExQ®. As an EdTech entrepreneur, Sucheta has designed ExQ's personalized digital learning curriculum/tool that empowers middle and high school students to develop self-awareness and strategic thinking skills through the mastery of Executive Function and social-emotional competence.Support the show