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Poster #2 - Development of Inhibitory Control From 7 to 11 Months

Fri, March 22, 12:45 to 2:00pm, Baltimore Convention Center, Floor: Level 1, Exhibit Hall B

Integrative Statement

Inhibitory control (IC) abilities in early development predict cognitive, academic, and socio-emotional outcomes in childhood and adolescence (Blair & Razza, 2007), as well as adulthood (Moffitt et al., 2011). Although there is disagreement as to the specific nature of IC (Munakata et al., 2011; Nigg, 2000), its value for optimal development is undisputed. Diamond (2013) proposes a parsimonious view of IC during early development, with two main types of IC: interference control (subtypes are attention inhibition, cognitive inhibition) and self-control/response inhibition (related to later developing self-discipline). Attention inhibition is focused on the suppression of attention to competing stimuli and involves prefrontal attentional networks. Cognitive inhibition is focused on the suppression of previously acquired information and memories and involves frontal-parietal networks. Thus, based on behavioral and neurophysiological studies with adults, attention IC and cognitive IC appear to be dissociable (Diamond, 2013; Friedman & Miyake, 2004). We wanted to know if their behavioral foundations in infancy were also dissociable. Holmboe and colleagues (2008) reported that attention IC and cognitive IC were correlated at 9 months, but cognitive IC was a reaching task, whereas attention IC was a looking task. Response modality can impact cognitive IC task performance (Cuevas & Bell, 2010).

Twenty-one infants (12 boys) and their parents were seen monthly in the research lab from 7 to 11 months. Infants were full term, typical birthweight, with no gestation or birth complications. Mothers had wide-ranging education levels. At each lab visit experimenters administered the looking A-not-B task (Bell, 2012; Bell & Adams, 1999) as the cognitive IC task and Freeze-Frame (Holmboe et al., 2008, 2010) as the attention IC task; hence, both tasks required a “looking” response. Task order was counterbalanced across infants and for each infant across monthly visits. Due to technical and fussiness issues, we are missing complete Freeze-Frame data for two infants.

Figure 1 shows percentage correct performance on A-not-B cognitive IC task from 7 to 11 months. Both non-inhibitory (original or “A”; F(4,17)=6.32, p=.003) and inhibitory (reversal or “B”; F(4,17)=5.25, p=.006) trials showed development across age (i.e., higher percentage correct). As expected, inhibitory (reversal) trials were more difficult. Figure 2 shows number of looks to cues on Freeze-Frame attention IC task from 7 to 11 months. Both non-inhibitory (boring cues; F(4,15)=2.988, p=.053) and inhibitory (interesting cues; F(4,15)=7.947; p=.001) trials showed development across age (i.e., fewer looks). As expected, infants were less likely to look away during inhibitory (interesting) trials.

Unlike Holmboe (2008), A-not-B and Freeze-Frame inhibition trials were not correlated at 9 months (r=.13, p=.57), nor were non-inhibition trials (r=.06, p=.78). There were no within age task correlations. Across age correlations failed against corrections for multiple analyses. Failure to replicate Holmboe (2008) may be due to our use of the looking version of the A-not-B cognitive IC task rather than the reaching version.

These data provide the first evidence of the development of two different types of IC before the first birthday. This work fills critical gaps in our scientific knowledge regarding normal trajectories of early IC development.

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