Brain Changes Underlying the Development of Cognitive Control and Reasoning

Abstract

What precisely is changing over time in a child's brain leading to improved control over his or her thoughts and behavior? This chapter investigates neural mechanisms that develop through childhood and adolescence and underlie changes in working memory, cognitive control, and reasoning. The effects of age and experience on specific cognitive functions are discussed with respect to functional brain imaging studies, highlighting the importance of interactions between prefrontal and parietal cortices in cognitive control and high-level cognition.