Thinking around the corner: the development of planning abilities

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Development
• Neuropsychology
• Child Psychology

Background:

• Planning and forward search are critical for everyday problem-solving.
• Understanding the developmental trajectory of these abilities is essential for cognitive science.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the development of planning abilities in young children.
• To examine how problem structure, specifically search depth and subgoal ambiguity, affects planning accuracy.
• To explore the relationship between age, planning, and executive functions like working memory and inhibition.

Main Methods:

• A variant of the Tower of London task was administered to four- and five-year-old children.
• Problems were designed to vary in required search depth (forward processing vs. ahead search) and subgoal ordering ambiguity.
• Working memory and inhibition were assessed.

Main Results:

• Five-year-olds demonstrated superior planning accuracy compared to four-year-olds, especially on tasks requiring forward search.
• The age-related difference in planning accuracy was not explained by working memory or inhibition.
• Age influenced subgoal ordering, affecting planning and movement execution times.

Conclusions:

• Significant development in planning abilities occurs between four and five years of age.
• This development is linked to integrating and validating anticipated consequences of actions.
• The Tower of London task, with careful problem design, is valuable for assessing planning in children.