Advancing the Understanding of the Factor Structure of Executive Functioning

There has been considerable debate and interest regarding the factor structure of executive functioning (EF). Therefore, the aim of the current study was to delve into this issue differently, by investigating EF and other cognitive constructs, such as working memory capacity (WMC), relational integration, and divided attention, which may contribute to EF. Here, we examined whether it is possible to provide evidence for a definite model of EF containing the components of updating, shifting, and inhibition. For this purpose, 202 young adults completed a battery of EF, three WMC tests, three relational integration tests, and two divided attention tests. A confirmatory factor analysis on all the cognitive abilities produced a five-factor structure, which included one factor predominately containing shifting tasks, the next factor containing two updating tasks, the third one predominately representing WMC, the fourth factor consisting of relational integration and antisaccade tasks, and finally, the last factor consisting of the divided attention and stop signal tasks. Lastly, a subsequent hierarchical model supported a higher-order factor, thereby representing general cognitive ability.

COMPARATIVE META-ANALYTIC EVALUATION OF THE IMPACT OF SUPPLY CHAIN INTEGRATION ON PERFORMANCE: A DETAILED PERSPECTIVE OF MODERATOR AND MEDIATOR ANALYSIS

In an environment with ever changing customers’ needs and intensifying global competition, quality processes and supply chain (SC) are critical for organisational success. To satisfy customers, outsmart competition and improve performance, contemporary organisations are trying to improve on their processes through integrated supply chains. In an attempt to address this question and effectively contribute to this topic, a comparative meta- analytical evaluation along with key moderator and mediator analysis was conducted. In the lens of many theories, SCI from two perspectives; SCID (internal, suppliers, customer integration) with 67 studies and SCIF (information, operational, relational integration) with 25 studies was assessed on overall performance as well as on both operational and business performance. A quantitative meta-analysis based on Hunter and Schmidt (2004) which was performed through Jamovi, revealed the following: The meta-analysis results which were obtained through Jamovi provided significant correlation coefficients for SCID and SCIF respectively (ř = .476, p <.002) and (ř =.508, p <.001). Therefore, indicating that the association between SCID and performance is medium and positive, while that of SCIF and performance is positive and large. This is a clear indication that SCI from the perspective of SCID and SCIF yields different results, with SCIF having a relatively large effect. Moreover, on average SCIF both at aggregate and individual level has a slightly large effect on performance than SCID. Operational performance was the most influenced by SCID and SCIF, although operational and relational integration indicated a significant larger effect on business performance. Thus, individual SCID and SCIF constructs have different effects on business and operational as overall performance. All moderators though with different levels of interactions indicated a significant effect on both SCID and SCIF. Of the three mediators tested, customer integration had a 32% negative effect, SC agility showed an 89.1% full mediation effect with flexibility indicating a 53% significant effect.

Relational Integration in the Human Brain: A Review and Synthesis

Relational integration is required when multiple explicit representations of relations between entities must be jointly considered to make inferences. We provide an overview of the neural substrate of relational integration in humans and the processes that support it, focusing on work on analogical and deductive reasoning. In addition to neural evidence, we consider behavioral and computational work that has informed neural investigations of the representations of individual relations and of relational integration. In very general terms, evidence from neuroimaging, neuropsychological, and neuromodulatory studies points to a small set of regions (generally left lateralized) that appear to constitute key substrates for component processes of relational integration. These include posterior parietal cortex, implicated in the representation of first-order relations (e.g., A: B); rostrolateral pFC, apparently central in integrating first-order relations so as to generate and/or evaluate higher-order relations (e.g., A: B:: C: D); dorsolateral pFC, involved in maintaining relations in working memory; and ventrolateral pFC, implicated in interference control (e.g., inhibiting salient information that competes with relevant relations). Recent work has begun to link computational models of relational representation and reasoning with patterns of neural activity within these brain areas.

Individual Differences in Updating are not related to Reasoning Ability and Working Memory Capacity

Updating is the executive function (EF) previously found to most strongly relate to higher cognitive abilities such as reasoning. However, this relationship could be a methodological artifact: Measures of other EFs (i.e., inhibition and shifting) usually isolate the contribution of EF, whereas updating is measured by overall accuracy in working memory (WM) tasks involving updating. This updating accuracy-score conflates updating-specific individual differences (e.g., removal of outdated information) with variance in WM maintenance. Re-analyzing data (N = 111) from von Bastian et al. (2016), we separated updating-specific variance from WM maintenance variance. Updating contributed only 15% to individual differences in performance in the updating tasks, and it correlated neither with reasoning nor with independent WM measures reflecting storage and processing or relational integration. In contrast, the WM maintenance component of the updating task correlated with both abilities. These findings challenge the view that updating contributes to variance in higher cognitive abilities.