Executive Function in Autism & ADHD – Same Skills, Different Weak Spots

Executive Function in Autism & ADHD – Same Skills, Different Weak Spots

Picture this…

You’re about to leave the house.

Your autistic teen insists on wearing their usual hoodie even though it’s 28°C outside.

Your ADHD teen, meanwhile, can’t remember where they put their shoes… or their phone… or the bag they just had in their hands two minutes ago.

Both moments are frustrating, but they come from different parts of the brain’s “air traffic control” system, also known as executive functions.

The Three Core Skills

Executive functions are made up of three main skills:

Flexible Thinking – switching between ideas, adapting to change, seeing things from different perspectives.

Working Memory – holding and using information in your mind long enough to act on it.

Inhibitory Control – resisting distractions, impulses, and automatic responses.

When any of these skills are weaker, life can get bumpy. For autistic and ADHD brains, all three can be challenging, but certain skills often stand out as the biggest hurdle.

Autistic Brains – Rigid Thinking and Social Strain

Autistic people often have more difficulty with flexible thinking. Social situations are full of shifting rules, subtle hints, and unexpected changes. Without the ability to adapt quickly, interactions can feel like trying to play a game where the rules keep changing mid-play. Routines and predictability become a comfort because they remove the mental strain of constant adaptation.

This doesn’t mean autistic people cannot be flexible. It means the energy cost is higher, so flexibility needs to be supported and built up gradually.

ADHD Brains – Forgetting While You’re Doing

ADHD often hits working memory the hardest. Instructions disappear halfway through a task. You walk into the kitchen and forget why you’re there. Conversations can get derailed because your brain jumps to something new before you’ve finished processing the old thought.

ADHDers can often be surprisingly flexible thinkers, making quick leaps between ideas or coming up with creative solutions on the fly. However, following through can be a challenge without external support.

Inhibitory Control – The Shared Challenge

Both autistic and ADHD individuals often struggle with inhibitory control, but it can look different.

In ADHD, this is often linked to impulsivity, acting or speaking before thinking, moving quickly from one thing to another, or finding it hard to resist distractions. The brain’s brakes do not always kick in fast enough, especially when the task is boring or the environment is stimulating.

In autism, inhibitory control challenges are often connected to emotional regulation and sensory overwhelm. It might be difficult to stop repetitive behaviours, finding it hard to let go of a thought, or being unable to shift away from an emotional state once it has started. This is not impulsivity in the ADHD sense, but a struggle to transition between mental or emotional states.

What They Share

Both autistic and ADHD individuals can have weaknesses across all three executive function skills. Both benefit from structured support. The difference lies in where the greatest challenge tends to be, and how that shapes life. For autistic people, rigid thinking can limit social adaptability and comfort with change. For ADHDers, weak working memory can limit follow-through and task completion. Both can find inhibitory control difficult, but for different reasons.

How to Help

For autistic brains, practice safe flexibility with small, predictable changes over time. Rehearse alternative scenarios in advance and use visual aids to outline what is staying the same and what is changing.

For ADHD brains, externalise memory with reminders, alarms, lists, and sticky notes. Break tasks into visible, trackable steps and keep essential items in consistent places to reduce the time spent searching for them.

For inhibitory control in both, create pause strategies, this could be physical pauses, breathing exercises, or calming routines. For autism, focus on easing transitions between emotional or sensory states. For ADHD, focus on building habits that slow down the moment between impulse and action.

Final Thought

This isn’t about labelling one brain better at a certain skill. It’s about understanding the unique shape of each person’s executive function profile. When we know where the main weak spots are, we can strengthen them and reduce stress, making room for each person’s natural strengths to shine.

Whether you are rigid, forgetful, impulsive, or a little bit of everything, the right support means your brain can do more than just get by; it can thrive.