(University of Trier, Germany)
Cognitive control contributions to learning and memory : Lifespan development and neural plasticity.
Ensuring efficient learning and memory is not an easy feat: we need to select what and how to learn, acquire new information so that it can be retrieved when needed in the future, and flexibly adapt when circumstances change. Cognitive control processes play a key role for scaffolding learning and memory by monitoring and regulating information processing in line with our goals and task demands. These processes are implemented by a core set of frontal and posterior parietal brain regions that undergo protracted development across childhood and adolescence, and decline in old age. I will first highlight work demonstrating that changes in monitoring and control across childhood and adolescence contribute to episodic memory development. Next, I will discuss how senescent changes in the neural underpinnings of monitoring and control contribute to older adults' memory difficulties. Finally, I will outline ongoing work probing the neural plasticity of the cognitive control network in children. Together, these findings further our understanding how the neurocognitive development of cognitive control shapes learning and memory across the lifespan.
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