Age differences in the capacity demands of a strategy among spontaneously strategic children

This study examined whether spontaneously strategic children from two age groups differed in the capacity required to execute a strategy. The strategic behavior of younger (grades K and 1) and older (grades 4 and 5) children (N = 104) was assessed on a selective memory task. Children selected objects to view from a larger pool of objects. The most mature strategy (i.e., selectivity) involves opening doors that reveal objects to be remembered and not opening those that do not. In a dual-task procedure in a second session, children performed a finger tapping task simultaneously with the selective strategy. The reduction of rate of finger tapping from the finger tapping baseline to the dual-task trials provided an assessment of the capacity required to execute the strategy. A control group followed the same procedure, but with a simpler door opening selective strategy. A significant age difference in the capacity required for the strategy, even among spontaneously strategic children, suggested that there is further development of strategies even after children spontaneously produce them. Results were discussed in terms of increased strategy effectiveness during development.