Executive Functions in Non-WEIRD Populations: Reflections from Ecuador and Thailand

Executive function, the top-down control of goal-directed behavior, is a critical factor in the development of society. Accordingly, it varies substantially across contexts, with examples of strengths in executive functioning observed in children living in cultures outside of those described as WEIRD (Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic).

Scant research has examined the concepts and applications of executive functions in non-WEIRD contexts. To ameliorate this, we aimed to compare two different non-WEIRD cultures.

Using a reflective-comparative method, we examined aspects of two very different cultures: Ecuador in South America and Thailand in Southeast Asia. As psychologists working in those cultures, we reflected on the difficulties we encountered in assessing executive functions, exploring the challenges and theoretical issues for research and clinical practice.

In both Ecuador and Thailand, the use of executive function as a concept is mainly limited to educational and clinical practice, with little basic psychology research being conducted or published. However, the extent of limiting factors and reasons for limited use vary between the cultures.

Our observations emphasized the differences between these cultures, more than the similarities, and how there are no simple solutions to applying WEIRD psychology in non-WEIRD cultures.

Although test adaptation remains an important process, due to the diversity of challenges, we argue that developing bespoke procedures to assess executive functions for experimental or applied work may be an appropriate way forward. Additionally, two-way international collaboration can help refine the concept of executive function in general.