Thompson Abigail, Steinbeis Nikolaus
Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, UCL, London, WC1H 0AP, UK.
Curr Opin Behav Sci. 2020 Dec;36:98-105. doi: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2020.08.001.
Executive functions (EFs) are cognitive processes that support flexible goal pursuit. Healthy development of EFs during childhood is critical for later life outcomes including health, wealth and educational attainment. As such it is crucial to understand how EFs can be supported and protected against insult. Here we examine whether there are sensitive periods in the development of EFs, by drawing on deprivation and enrichment studies in humans. While there is suggestive evidence that pre-6 months of age constitutes a sensitive period for EF development, given the higher-order nature of EF, we argue for the possibility of multiple sensitive periods of constituent processes. We identify relevant future questions and outline a research agenda to systematically test for sensitive period in EF development.
执行功能（EFs）是支持灵活目标追求的认知过程。儿童时期执行功能的健康发展对于包括健康、财富和教育成就在内的后期生活结果至关重要。因此，了解如何支持执行功能并防止其受到损害至关重要。在这里，我们通过借鉴人类的剥夺和丰富研究，来探讨执行功能发展过程中是否存在敏感期。虽然有暗示性证据表明6个月前的年龄构成执行功能发展的敏感期，但鉴于执行功能的高阶性质，我们认为其组成过程可能存在多个敏感期。我们确定了未来相关的问题，并概述了一个研究议程，以系统地测试执行功能发展中的敏感期。
