Clinical Research Directory

Development of Executive Functions in Children and Adolescents: Establishment of a Reference Norm for the Assessment of Executive Functions in Ecological Settings (eEFEe Tool)

The aim of this interventional study is to develop a normative reference for the ecological assessment of executive functions in children and adolescents using the eEFEe tool. Executive functions are high-level cognitive abilities that support planning, behavioral regulation, and problem solving in everyday life. Current neuropsychological tests often fail to reflect real-life functioning. The eEFEe tool was designed to assess these abilities through tasks that simulate daily situations. The study will include healthy children and adolescents aged 7 to 18 years, enrolled in regular schools in France. Participants will complete the eEFEe ecological tasks, as well as standardized cognitive and social cognition assessments, and parents will provide sociodemographic information. Results from this study will be used to establish reference norms for the eEFEe tool and to examine how executive function performance varies according to age, cognitive development, and sociodemographic factors. These normative data will later support the clinical use of the eEFEe tool to better identify executive difficulties in children and adolescents.