The Effectiveness of Mind Games on the Executive Functions of Preschool Children

Document Type : Scientific- research

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj Branch, Sanandaj, Iran

2 MA in Preschool Education, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj Branch, Sanandaj, Iran.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mind games on the executive functions of preschool children. The research method was experimental with a pretest-posttest control group design. The statistical population included all girls and boys in preschool centers of District 1 of Sanandaj in the school year 2018-2019, from which two preschool centers were randomly selected and 20 individuals were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. To collect the data, the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (teacher form) (Gioia, Isquith, Guy and Kenworthy, 2000), and to analyze the data, univariate and multivariate analysis of covariance were used. The results showed that the teaching of mind games had an effect on the executive functions of preschool children and those children who had been taught mind games had improved their executive functions. Results also showed that training in mind games was effective only in two dimensions of attention transfer and working memory (P < 0.05) and there was no significant difference between the experimental and control groups in other dimensions of executive functions (P < 0.05). Based on these results, mind games can be formally used in the educational program of kindergartens.

Keywords


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