This theoretical review attempts to carry out an overview of the concept of Executive Functions, exposing various facets emerging from the latest scientific developments, so that novice readers can begin to learn about the subject and those who are already familiar with it can update their knowledge. The review begins by explaining what is meant by Executive Functions and why they are important. Following that, we review both the components and the concepts commonly used in the literature that are directly related to Executive Functions. Finally, we review their precursors and those environmental factors that influence their development.

Executive functions are psychological processes of great importance for proper functioning in various areas of human development, including academic performance. For this reason, from both clinical and educational perspectives, there is great interest in how they are assessed. This article describes the development and standardization process of Yellow-Red, an instrument for directly assessing executive functions in children between 6 and 11 years of age in a playful format using digital support. The test was based on a three-factor model of executive functioning: inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. Yellow-Red comprises six subtests: cognitive inhibition, behavioral inhibition, auditory working memory, visual working memory, cognitive flexibility, and a global assessment test of executive functions. The test was administered to 245 boys and girls between 6 and 11 years of age. Along with the Yellow-Red subtests, gold standard tests were applied for each of the executive functions assessed. The test’s psychometric properties are powerful in both reliability and validity evidence. The reliability indices are all greater than 0.8. As evidence of convergent validity, correlations were established between the tests, and the tests considered gold standards. All correlations were significant, with values ranging between 0.42 and 0.73. On the other hand, the factor structure of the test was analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis. Although it is possible to demonstrate the progressive differentiation of the factor structure with age, it was only possible to find two factors at older ages, one for inhibition/flexibility and one for working memory.

Los niños con discapacidad presentan mayor riesgo de presentar problemas socioemocionales. En el presente estudio se comparó la presencia de problemas emocionales en preescolares con discapacidad visual, discapacidad auditiva y desarrollo típico en cuanto a los problemas totales, externalizantes e internalizantes, así como respecto de síndromes específicos. El grupo con discapacidad sensorial presenta significativamente más problemas emocionales en la escala total y la escala de problemas externalizantes, que el grupo de desarrollo típico. Distinguiendo por tipo de discapacidad presentada, el análisis arrojó que los tres grupos difieren significativamente solo en las escalas total y externalización. Finalmente, se analizó la prevalencia de rangos de riesgo y clínicos para los tres grupos principales. Aun cuando las diferencias no son estadísticamente significativas, optan por ser mayores en los grupos con discapacidad sensorial. Los resultados se discuten en torno a la importancia de la detección y prevención de problemas socioemocionales tempranamente, lo cual es fundamental para promover una mejor calidad de vida de las personas con discapacidad, además de evitar enfermedades mentales en el futuro.

This study investigated the repercussions of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the subsequent quarantine on the emotional well-being of children in their initial years of formal schooling, with particular emphasis on children with special educational needs (SEN) and children from high and low socioeconomic statuses (SES). This longitudinal study employed the Child Behavior Checklist for ages 6-18 (CBCL) completed by the students' guardians at least once during 2018-2019 and again during 2020. The results showed differences in internalizing and externalizing problems after 8 months of quarantine and a significant increase in students fitting clinical or borderline categories given by the CBCL itself. The results are described in detail for four groups considering the combination of SEN and SES characteristics, showing the importance of their intersectionality, especially between low SES and SEN. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

This study updates the work by Rosas y Santa-Cruz (2013) on educational gaps in Chile between 2014 and 2024. It examines how school segregation and unequal access to resources have perpetuated substantial differences in academic performance between students in public and private schools. Using cognitive tests and standardized exams such as SIMCE, PSU, PDT, and PAES, the study finds that these gaps persist and widen with age, reaching up to 1.7 standard deviations in adulthood. The PISA test confirms that Chile has one of the widest educational gaps internationally. Despite reforms such as the elimination of copayments, the creation of Local Public Education Services, and the PACE program, their impact on reducing educational inequality has been minimal. The study concludes that performance differences are more closely linked to school affiliation than to socioeconomic status. Private schools tend to translate socioeconomic privilege into academic advantages, while the public sector faces greater structural barriers. The persistence of these gaps across different exams and age groups demonstrates that the problem is systemic and requires profound changes to ensure a more equitable education.