Remediation of Executive Function Deficits After Traumatic Brain Injury

Abstract

Disturbances in executive functioning in patients with traumatic brain injury reduce the capacity for behavioral adaptation and regulation, although specific cognitive abilities are often preserved in these patients. In rehabilitation, the spontaneous and self-directed use of strategies is a hallmark of effective executive control. This article describes several interventions directed at the remediation of executive functioning: self-prediction for treatment of anticipatory deficits, self-instructional training for planning deficits, and self-monitoring training. Training may result in either the implementation of specific behavioral routines to compensate for disturbed executive control or, less often, the reestablishment of internally mediated self-regulatory processes.