Neuroscience of Cognitive Development: The Role of Experience and the Developing Brain

Description

A new understanding of cognitive development from the perspective of neuroscience This book provides a state-of-the-art understanding of the neural bases of cognitive development. Although the field of developmental cognitive neuroscience is still in its infancy, the authors effectively demonstrate that our understanding of cognitive development is and will be vastly improved as the mechanisms underlying development are elucidated. The authors begin by establishing the value of considering neuroscience in order to understand child development and then provide an overview of brain development. They include a critical discussion of experience-dependent changes in the brain. The authors explore whether the mechanisms underlying developmental plasticity differ from those underlying adult plasticity, and more fundamentally, what distinguishes plasticity from development. Having armed the reader with key neuroscience basics, the book begins its examination of the neural bases of cognitive development by examining the methods employed by professionals in developmental cognitive neuroscience. Following a brief historical overview, the authors discuss behavioral, anatomic, metabolic, and electrophysiological methods. Finally, the book explores specific content areas, focusing on those areas where there is a significant body of knowledge on the neural underpinnings of cognitive development, including: * Declarative and non-declarative memory and learning * Spatial cognition * Object recognition * Social cognition * Speech and language development * Attention development For cognitive and developmental psychologists, as well as students in developmental psychology, neuroscience, and cognitive development, the authors' view of behavioral development from the perspective of neuroscience sheds new light on the mechanisms that underlie how the brain functions and how a child learns and behaves. Preface vii Introduction: Why Should Developmental Psychologists Be Interested in the Brain? 1 1 Brain Development and Neural Plasticity 4 2 Neural Plasticity 30 3 Methods of Cognitive Neuroscience 44 4 The Development of Speech and Language 58 5 The Development of Declarative (or Explicit) Memory 71 6 The Development of Nondeclarative (or Implicit) Memory 92 7 The Development of Spatial Cognition 100 8 The Development of Object Recognition 107 9 The Development of Social Cognition 119 10 The Development of Higher Cognitive (Executive) Functions 143 11 The Development of Attention 154 12 The Future of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience 159 References 161 Index 205