Executive Functioning

: Why Don’t Tasks and Questionnaires Agree with One Another?

Abstract

Background: This thesis focuses on the widespread failure of cognitive tasks and
questionnaires which ostensibly both measure executive functioning (EF) to produce
meaningful correlations. One primary factor which may stymie correlations between
measurement types is the poor reliability of many executive functioning tasks. In addition,
EF tasks often only represent performance in a single-timepoint (state EF), whereas EF
questionnaires assess a much broader period (trait EF).
Approach: The reliability of tasks and questionnaires were prioritised in this study, to
reduce chances of Type 2 error. In addition, Studies 1 and 2 sought to make the timescales
which EF tasks and questionnaires measure more similar, to investigate if this could
improve correlations.
Methods: Studies 1 and 2 aimed to make EF task measures more generalisable by
measuring task EF up to 28 times across one-two weeks, to create a trait -like measure of
EF. A measure of state-like questionnaire EF was also created in Study 2, which assessed a
vastly reduced timescale.
Results: None of the trait -like measures of task EF produced meaningful correlations with
EF questionnaire measures. In Study 1, only EF tasks completed on the study’s first day
meaningfully correlated with EF questionnaires (r = -.291 and r =
.365). However, in Study
2, fluctuations in EF tasks’ performance robustly predicted 0.9 and 1.5 percent of variance
in state-like questionnaire EF.
Discussion: Findings indicate EF tasks and questionnaires which are sensitive to common
fluctuations in participants’ cognitive states share additional common variance. More
generally, findings indicate contextual and methodological factors moderate correlations
between EF tasks and questionnaires.
Conclusion: This research indicates the differing timescales of EF tasks and questionnaires
can attenuate correlations between them. Future research should continue to explore the
commonalities and differences between EF tasks and questionnaires to build a more
nuanced understanding of executive functioning research.

Date of Award	9 Dec 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bristol
Supervisor	Chris Jarrold (Supervisor) & Edwin Dalmaijer (Supervisor)