Imagine you’re in your friend's college dorm room. Your friend Zoe is about to start working on her art project due tomorrow when she suddenly realizes she’s out of containers to hold her paint water. She looks around and sees an everyday item: a mug she uses for her coffee every morning.
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When something isn’t working in your life, can you pivot and approach the problem from a new angle? Can you put yourself in someone else’s shoes and see things from their perspective? These are examples of cognitive flexibility - the ability to shift perspectives. Cognitive flexibility enables you to switch between tasks, think outside the box and view situations from different perspectives.
Cognitive flexibility isn’t just about handling challenges, it’s also about being open to life’s surprises. Maybe you were planning to spend your summer backpacking across Europe or were set on starting undergraduate or graduate school next year. Then, out of the blue, an amazing environmental research opportunity comes along that would mean rethinking your plans. To take the offer, you might need to cancel your trip or push back your school plans. Instead of sticking rigidly to your original plan, cognitive flexibility helps you pivot and take advantage of the amazing opportunities right in front of you. It’s what enables you to embrace unexpected opportunities and make the most of the twists and turns life throws your way.
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YOU FIND YOURSELF AT A CROSSROADS...
Cognitive flexibility also allows us to reframe our perspective by enabling us to shift our focus when faced with challenges. Instead of getting overwhelmed by worries about the future, we can redirect our attention to the present moment and enjoy what's happening right now. Similarly, when we dwell on our shortcomings, cognitive flexibility helps us switch perspectives and recognize our strengths, reminding us of all the qualities that make us unique and capable. This ability to adjust our thinking is essential for maintaining a positive mindset and navigating life's ups and downs with resilience.
Tournez à droite après la prochaine intersection et la librairie devrait se trouver juste de l'autre côté de la rue.
Take a right after the next intersection and then the bookstore should be right across the street
Now, imagine you’re standing in a bustling cafe, waiting for your coffee, when you overhear two people at a nearby table having a conversation. One person is speaking in English, but the other responds in French. As a bilingual speaker, you instinctively understand both sides of the conversation, but it feels slightly jarring – your brain has to switch back and forth between languages to follow the discussion.
Suddenly, one of them asks for your help. The English speaker doesn’t understand the French instructions for how to find a nearby bookstore, and the French speaker doesn’t understand the English explanation of the route. Now it’s up to you to bridge the gap. First, you inhibit the urge to respond in your preferred language or focus on just one person, recognizing that the situation requires you to adapt and communicate in both languages.You use your inhibitory control to avoid speaking English to the French-speaker and French to the English-speaker. Then, you exercise your working memory, holding both languages in mind and mentally juggling their structures and meanings. And you use your cognitive flexibility to start translating, smoothly alternating between English and French, adapting the words and phrasing to suit each person. Cognitive flexibility builds on working memory and inhibitory control. It is important to successfully navigate complex, real-world situations that require adapting to changing environments, managing multiple tasks, and effectively problem-solving.
Cognitive Flexibility Task
Remember how your friend Zoe found creative ways to use a mug: she cleaned her paintbrushes in it, used it to measure flour for baking, turned it into a pen holder, and even planted a succulent in it?
Now it’s your turn!
Your Task is to think of at least three different ways to use the everyday objects below. Go beyond the obvious! Get practical, creative, or even a little silly. Once you’re done, click on the "reveal answer button" to reveal some ideas we came up with and see if any match yours.
References
1. Diamond, A. (2013). Executive Functions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64(1), 135–168. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-113011-143750 2. Baldo, J. V., Shimamura, A. P., Delis, D. C., Kramer, J., & Kaplan, E. (2001). Verbal and Design Fluency in Patients with Frontal Lobe Lesions. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 7(5), 586–596. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1355617701755063 3. Ionescu, T. (2012). Exploring the Nature of Cognitive Flexibility. New Ideas in Psychology, 30(2), 190–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.newideapsych.2011.11.001 4. Liu, H., Fan, N., Rossi, S., Yao, P., & Chen, B. (2016). The Effect of Cognitive Flexibility on Task Switching and Language Switching. International Journal of Bilingualism, 20(5), 563–579. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006915572400 5. Mahy, C. E. V., & Munakata, Y. (2015). Transitions in Executive Function: Insights from Developmental Parallels between Prospective Memory and Cognitive Flexibility. Child Development Perspectives, 9, 128-132. 6. Wecker, N. S., Kramer, J. H., Hallam, B. J., & Delis, D. C. (2005). Mental flexibility: Age Effects on Switching. Neuropsychology, 19(3), 345-352. 7. Uddin, L. Q. (2021). Cognitive and Behavioural Flexibility: Neural Mechanisms and Clinical Considerations. Nature Reviews: Neuroscience, 22, 167-179. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-021-00428-w