Sustained attention to a predictable, unengaging Go/No-Go task shows ongoing development between 6 and 11 years

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Development
• Neuroscience
• Psychology

Background:

• Response time variability (RTV) is a key indicator of sustained attention.
• Developmental changes in RTV across different temporal frequencies are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate developmental changes in RTV across different temporal frequencies in children.
• To examine how sustained attention matures in children aged 6 to 10 years.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Sustained Attention to Response Task (SART) with 6-, 8-, and 10-year-olds over six months.
• Applied Fast Fourier Transform and ex-Gaussian analyses to response time (RT) data.
• Assessed momentary fluctuations, gradual changes, long responses, and time-on-task effects.

Main Results:

• 10-year-olds showed improved sustained attention with fewer errors and less variability compared to younger groups.
• Older children exhibited time-on-task effects, particularly in the latter half of the task.
• 6-year-olds demonstrated the least mature sustained attention, with significant time-on-task decrements.

Conclusions:

• Sustained attention undergoes significant maturation from age 6 to 10, with distinct developmental trajectories for different temporal aspects of attention.
• A period of relative stability in sustained attention performance may occur between 8 and 9 years of age.
• Time-on-task effects highlight the challenges in maintaining sustained attention even in older children.