Funciones ejecutivas y género. Una revisión sistemática

Executive functions are a set of higher-order skills involved in the generation, regulation, and effective execution of behaviors to perform goal-directed activities. Given the importance of gender, it is essential to explore how executive functioning contributes to the adaptive behavior of women and men. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the existing evidence on executive functions in relation to gender. A systematic review of articles published in scientific journals was conducted using the PRISMA method. Selection criteria for the databases, inclusion and exclusion criteria for the studies, and search descriptors were established. Initially, 9277 records were identified, which, after being evaluated for eligibility, were reduced to 24 studies that were included for analysis. Four categories of analysis were established: women<men, women>men, women≠men, women=men. The analysis revealed that, although there is no consensus among the studies, the discrepancy decreases in those reporting that the brain areas and circuits activated in executive functioning differ between genders. The findings are discussed.