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Understanding autonomous behaviour development: Exploring the developmental contributions of context-tracking and
Aurélien Frick1,2, Maria A Brandimonte2, Nicolas Chevalier1
1Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
Developmental Science
|December 26, 2021
Summary
Children
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- Autonomy and cognitive control develop throughout childhood.
- Understanding how children engage self-directed cognitive control is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanisms of self-directed cognitive control in children.
- To differentiate the roles of context-tracking and task selection in autonomous control.
Main Methods:
- Manipulated context-tracking difficulty (contextual support presence/absence).
- Varied task selection difficulty (task asymmetry).
- Tested 5-6-year-olds, 9-10-year-olds, and adults.
Main Results:
- Both context-tracking and task selection are crucial for self-directed control.
- Age-related improvements in self-directed control are primarily linked to enhanced context-tracking abilities.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive control development in childhood involves mastering context-tracking for goal achievement.
- Future research should explore interventions to bolster children's context-tracking skills for greater autonomy.
Keywords:
cognitive control developmentcontext-trackingself-directed controltask selectionvoluntary task-switchingMore Related Videos
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