Auditory Stimuli and Executive Functioning in Neurodivergent Populations: A Systematic Literature Review

Neurodivergent individuals, including those with ADHD and ASD, exhibit characteristic executive functioning (EF) deficits that impair daily cognitive and behavioural performance. Auditory stimuli notably binaural beats and subliminal audio have been proposed as non-invasive, background interventions capable of modulating neural activity and EF outcomes. Yet these three domains have been studied almost entirely in isolation. This systematic literature review (SLR) synthesises evidence across 27 papers spanning binaural beats and cognition, subliminal audio stimulation, and EF in neurodivergent populations. Database searches across Google Scholar, PubMed, and PsycINFO (2015–2025) identified papers meeting criteria of neurodivergent population, frequency or subliminal based auditory stimulus, and a cognitive or behavioural outcome. Results indicate that alpha and gamma frequency binaural beats are associated with working memory improvement and normalisation of EEG profiles in populations with learning difficulties and ADHD traits, while subliminal audio demonstrates capacity to influence nonconscious processing of attention, emotional regulation, and decision making. Five neurocognitive mechanisms neural entrainment, arousal regulation, timing and rhythm processing, nonconscious attentional priming, and metacognitive facilitation are proposed to link stimulus to EF outcome. This review is the first to synthesise all three bodies of evidence specifically in relation to neurodivergent EF.