Special Section on Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience to Inform Cognitive-Control Interventions for Drug Abuse
Hot and Cool Executive Function in Childhood and Adolescence: Development and Plasticity
Philip David Zelazo,
Stephanie M. Carlson,
Corresponding Author
Philip David Zelazo
University of Minnesota
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Philip David Zelazo, Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, 51 East River Rd., Minneapolis, MN 55455; e-mail:[email protected].Search for more papers by this authorPhilip David Zelazo,
Stephanie M. Carlson,
Corresponding Author
Philip David Zelazo
University of Minnesota
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Philip David Zelazo, Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, 51 East River Rd., Minneapolis, MN 55455; e-mail:[email protected].Search for more papers by this authorThe preparation of this article was supported in part by R01HD051495 to SMC.
The editorial review of this article and special section was handled by Nancy Eisenberg.
Abstract
Executive function (EF), which refers to the more deliberate, top-down neurocognitive processes involved in self-regulation, develops most rapidly during the preschool years, together with the growth of neural networks involving prefrontal cortex but continues to develop well into adulthood. Both EF and the neural systems supporting EF vary as a function of motivational significance, and this article discusses the distinction between the top-down processes that operate in motivationally and emotionally significant situations (“hot EF”) and the top-down processes that operate is more affectively neutral contexts (“cool EF”). Emerging evidence indicates that both hot and cool EF are surprisingly malleable, with implications for intervention and prevention.
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