The link between cognitive control and decision-making across child and adolescent development

- Cognitive control and PFC function is linked to child- and adolescent decision-making.
- Distinct facets of cognitive control play specific roles for decision-making during different periods of development.
- Behavioral control is critical during childhood.
- Integrating contextual information is increasingly relevant during adolescence.

Understanding the neurocognitive mechanisms of decision-making is crucial to titrate and optimize opportunities for learning in childhood and adolescence. The development of prefrontal cortex and associated cognitive control has been shown across various studies to be especially important for decision-making in development. While future-oriented and social decisions in children are best accounted for by improvements in inhibitory control, during adolescence this is predicted by an increased ability to flexibly integrate contextual information and adapt decisions and behavior accordingly. Taking into account distinct neurocognitive mechanisms and aspects of cognitive control for specific developmental periods is the beginning for integrating the neuroscience of decision-making and education.