Department of Psychology, Salem College, USA.
Dev Sci. 2014 Mar;17(2):203-11. doi: 10.1111/desc.12113. Epub 2013 Dec 14.
Developing cognitive control over one's thoughts, emotions, and actions is a fundamental process that predicts important life outcomes. Such control begins in infancy, and shifts during development from a predominantly reactive form (e.g. retrieving task-relevant information when needed) to an increasingly proactive form (e.g. maintaining task-relevant information in anticipation of needing it). While such developments are generally viewed as adaptive, cognitive abilities can also involve trade-offs, such that the benefits of developing increasingly proactive control may come with associated costs. In two experiments, we test for such cognitive trade-offs in children who are transitioning to proactive control. We find that proactive control predicts expected benefits in children's working memory, but is also associated with predicted costs in disproportionately slowing children under conditions of distraction. These findings highlight unique advantages and disadvantages of proactive and reactive control, and suggest caution in attempting to alter their balance during development.
发展对自身思维、情绪和行为的认知控制是一种预测重要生活结果的基本过程。这种控制始于婴儿期，并在发展过程中从主要的反应形式（例如，在需要时检索与任务相关的信息）转变为越来越主动的形式（例如，预期需要时保持与任务相关的信息）。虽然这些发展通常被视为适应性的，但认知能力也可能涉及权衡，即发展越来越主动的控制可能会带来相关的成本。在两项实验中，我们在向主动控制过渡的儿童中测试了这种认知权衡。我们发现，主动控制预测了儿童工作记忆中的预期收益，但在分心条件下不成比例地减缓儿童的速度，这也与预期的成本相关。这些发现突显了主动和反应控制的独特优势和劣势，并表明在试图改变其在发育过程中的平衡时应谨慎行事。
