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Adult aging is often associated with declining efficiency of executive functions (EFs), and these changes have, in turn, been attributed to aging-related changes in the frontal lobes and in frontal systems. This chapter highlights studies of cognitive aging, that is, experimental, theoretically motivated approaches to understanding aging-related changes in cognitive functioning. It emphasizes research in aging and EF from a neuropsychological standpoint with a spotlight on studies using putative tests of EF and/or frontal lobe functioning. The chapter reviews studies of EF in association with structural and/or functional imaging indices. It integrates these concepts, not to postulate a new theory but to suggest a way forward in addressing the questions that have been raised. The chapter suggests that the study of" EF" changes with aging would be better served by understanding the specific processes that are related to …