Review proposes executive functions as a shared mechanism in developmental psychopathology

A review in Molecular Psychiatry examines whether executive functions—working memory, inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility—constitute a transdiagnostic cognitive endophenotype in developmental psychopathology: a heritable, measurable trait potentially linking genetic susceptibility to psychiatric disorders. Drawing predominantly on large cohort studies and meta-analyses, the authors synthesise evidence on development, genetic and environmental influences, neural circuitry, and associations with internalising and externalising symptoms.

The reviewed evidence links impaired executive functions with multiple psychiatric conditions and subsequent symptomatology. Development depends partly on prolonged maturation of frontoparietal and cingulo-opercular networks. One cited analysis across four independent datasets, comprising more than 10,000 participants, found rapid executive-function development between ages 10 and 15, with adult-like levels reached around ages 18–20.

The authors propose that executive-function performance reflects context-dependent calculations about rewards and effort, rather than cognitive capacity alone. Anhedonia and apathy may alter these calculations, potentially helping explain why traditional executive-function training has had limited effects on mental health symptoms. This framework highlights motivational and contextual influences relevant to interpreting cognitive performance, but is not an established intervention strategy. Evidence supporting the proposed cost–benefit mechanism is sparse in adults and limited to a handful of studies in children and adolescents; further mechanistic research is needed.