Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
Encyclopedia
Developmental cognitive neuroscience is an interdisciplinary scientific field at the boundaries of neuroscience
, psychology
, social neuroscience
, developmental science, and cognitive science
.
and Jean Piaget
are increasingly coming to be understood in a neuronally realistic way.
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
, psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, social neuroscience
Social neuroscience
Social neuroscience is an interdisciplinary field devoted to understanding how biological systems implement social processes and behavior, and to using biological concepts and methods to inform and refine theories of social processes and behavior. Humans are fundamentally a social species, rather...
, developmental science, and cognitive science
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
.
Origins of the discipline
The scientific interface between cognitive neuroscience and human development has evoked considerable interest in recent years, as technological advances make it possible to map in detail the changes in brain structure that take place during development. The early developmental theories of Lev VygotskyLev Vygotsky
Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky was a Soviet psychologist, the founder of cultural-historical psychology, and the leader of the Vygotsky Circle.-Biography:...
and Jean Piaget
Jean Piaget
Jean Piaget was a French-speaking Swiss developmental psychologist and philosopher known for his epistemological studies with children. His theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called "genetic epistemology"....
are increasingly coming to be understood in a neuronally realistic way.
Tools and techniques employed
Researchers have a variety of different tools available to them:- One set of tools relates to brain imaging - the generation of "functional" maps of brain activity based on either changes in cerebral metabolism, blood flow, or electrical activity.
- Another methodological advance is related to the emergence of techniques for formal computational modelling of neural networksNeural NetworksNeural Networks is the official journal of the three oldest societies dedicated to research in neural networks: International Neural Network Society, European Neural Network Society and Japanese Neural Network Society, published by Elsevier...
and cognitive processes. Such models allow us to begin to bridge data on developmental neuroanatomy to data on behavioral changes associated with development. - A third methodological innovation is the increasing trend for studying groups of developmental disorders (such as autismAutismAutism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
and Williams syndromeWilliams syndromeWilliams syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a distinctive, "elfin" facial appearance, along with a low nasal bridge; an unusually cheerful demeanor and ease with strangers; developmental delay coupled with strong language skills; and cardiovascular problems, such as...
) together alongside typical development. Thus, rather than each syndrome being studied in isolation, comparisons between different typical and atypical trajectories of development are helping to reveal the extent and limits of cortical plasticity.
Major contributors to the field
- Jean DecetyJean DecetyJean Decety is a neuroscientist and an internationally recognized expert on cognitive neuroscience and social neuroscience. His research focuses on the neurobiological mechanisms underpinning social cognition, particularly empathy, sympathy, emotional self-regulation and more generally...
who studies empathy, sympathy, and implicit moral reasoning in typically developing children as well as children with social and cognitive disorders. - Mark JohnsonMark H. Johnson (professor)Mark Johnson is a British cognitive neuroscientist who since 1997 is head of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at Birkbeck, University of London....
, whose book Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience played a part in giving the field its name. Johnson specializes in the development of the social brain in infancy and has proposed the Interactive SpecializationInteractive SpecializationInteractive Specialization is a theory of brain development proposed by the British cognitive neuroscientist Mark Johnson, who is head of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at Birkbeck, University of London, London....
hypothesis of brain development. - Annette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-Smith is a professorial research fellow at the Developmental Neurocognition Lab at Birkbeck, University of London. Before moving to Birbeck, she was Head of the Neurocognitive Development Unit at Institute of Child Health, University College, London...
who specializes in developmental disorders, particularly Williams syndromeWilliams syndromeWilliams syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a distinctive, "elfin" facial appearance, along with a low nasal bridge; an unusually cheerful demeanor and ease with strangers; developmental delay coupled with strong language skills; and cardiovascular problems, such as...
. - Patricia K. KuhlPatricia K. KuhlPatricia K. Kuhl is a Professor of Speech and Hearing Sciences and co-director of the Institute for Brain and Learning Sciences at the University of Washington. She specializes in language acquisition and the neural bases of language, and she has also conducted research on language development in...
, who investigates language and brain development in young children. - Yuko MunakataYuko MunakataYuko Munakata is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Colorado. She has specialized in developmental cognitive neuroscience, taking a connectionist approach to cognitive development. Her research investigates the processing mechanisms underlying cognitive development, using converging...
, who builds computational models of development. She specializes in the early emergence of executive function. - Adele DiamondAdele DiamondAdele Diamond is one of the founders of the field of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. She holds the Canada Research Chair Tier 1 Professorship in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of British Columbia , Vancouver...
, who performs mainly behavioral testing, specializes in the development of executive function. - Barbara LandauBarbara LandauBarbara Landau is Dick and Lydia Todd Professor and Chair of the Cognitive Science Department at Johns Hopkins University. She specializes in language learning, spatial representation, and the relationships between these foundational systems of human knowledge. She is also an authority on...
, who studies cognitive development, focusing on the development of spatial language. Like Karmiloff-Smith, Landau specializes in the development of people with Williams SyndromeWilliams syndromeWilliams syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a distinctive, "elfin" facial appearance, along with a low nasal bridge; an unusually cheerful demeanor and ease with strangers; developmental delay coupled with strong language skills; and cardiovascular problems, such as...
. - Philip David ZelazoPhilip David ZelazoPhilip David Zelazo is a developmental psychologist and neuroscientist. His research has helped shape the field regarding the development of executive function .-Background:...
studies the development and neural bases of executive function, or the conscious control of thought, action, and emotion.
Notable books
- Beyond Modularity by Annette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-Smith is a professorial research fellow at the Developmental Neurocognition Lab at Birkbeck, University of London. Before moving to Birbeck, she was Head of the Neurocognitive Development Unit at Institute of Child Health, University College, London...
. A ground-breaking book when it was published in 1992, Karmiloff considers how the modules proposed, amongst others, by Jerry FodorJerry FodorJerry Alan Fodor is an American philosopher and cognitive scientist. He holds the position of State of New Jersey Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers University and is the author of many works in the fields of philosophy of mind and cognitive science, in which he has laid the groundwork for the...
might be implemented in the brain. She argues that modules emerge as a result of brain development, and makes intriguing connections with developmental theories proposed by Jean PiagetJean PiagetJean Piaget was a French-speaking Swiss developmental psychologist and philosopher known for his epistemological studies with children. His theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called "genetic epistemology"....
. - Rethinking InnatenessRethinking InnatenessPublished in 1996 by Jeffrey Elman, Annette Karmiloff-Smith, Elizabeth Bates, Mark Johnson, Domenico Parisi, and Kim Plunkett, Rethinking Innateness: A connectionist perspective on development is a book regarding gene/environment interaction...
by Jeffrey ElmanJeffrey ElmanJeffrey L. Elman is Distinguished Professor of Cognitive Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is a well-known psycholinguist and pioneer in the field of neural networks.-Biography:...
and colleagues. This influential book has received more than 1,000 citations, and has been nominated for the "One hundred most influential works in cognitive science from the 20th Century" (Minnesota Millennium Project). Published in 1996, it contests claims made by hard psychological Nativists (such as Steven PinkerSteven PinkerSteven Arthur Pinker is a Canadian-American experimental psychologist, cognitive scientist, linguist and popular science author...
) on the grounds that they are not biologically plausible. - Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience (3rd Ed. - 2010).
- Neuroconstructivism by Denis Mareschal and colleagues. Vol 1 is a theoretical work, arguing that it is essential to take constraints from the brain, body and environment seriously when assessing cognitive development. Vol 2 contains a selection of conceptually interesting neural networkNeural networkThe term neural network was traditionally used to refer to a network or circuit of biological neurons. The modern usage of the term often refers to artificial neural networks, which are composed of artificial neurons or nodes...
models. - Handbook of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
- The Handbook of Developmental Social Neuroscience. New York: Guilford Publications.
DCN research centers
- DCN Program at the University of Denver
- DCN Laboratory at the University of California, San Diego
- DCN Laboratory at Georgetown University
- DCN (Klingberg's group) at the Stockholm Brain Institute
- DCN Laboratory (Adele Diamond's group) at UBC
- DCN Lab at Virginia Tech
- DCN Initiative at the University of Houston
- DCN Lab at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
- DCN Lab at Northwestern University
- DCN Lab at University of Arizona
- DCN Lab at Boston University
- DCN Lab at Indiana University
- NICHD - The U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, University of London.
- Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences at the University of Washington.
- Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota.
- Social Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Chicago.
See also
- Developmental ScienceDevelopmental ScienceDevelopmental Science is a peer-reviewed scientific journal covering developmental psychology and developmental cognitive neuroscience that was established in 1998. The current editors are Denis Mareschal, Paul C. Quin, and Mark H...
(peer-reviewed journal) - Developmental psychologyDevelopmental psychologyDevelopmental psychology, also known as human development, is the scientific study of systematic psychological changes, emotional changes, and perception changes that occur in human beings over the course of their life span. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to...
- Social neuroscienceSocial neuroscienceSocial neuroscience is an interdisciplinary field devoted to understanding how biological systems implement social processes and behavior, and to using biological concepts and methods to inform and refine theories of social processes and behavior. Humans are fundamentally a social species, rather...
- NeuroscienceNeuroscienceNeuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
- Cognitive neuroscienceCognitive neuroscienceCognitive neuroscience is an academic field concerned with the scientific study of biological substrates underlying cognition, with a specific focus on the neural substrates of mental processes. It addresses the questions of how psychological/cognitive functions are produced by the brain...
- Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience - Journal