Presenter(s): Dakota Paulus—Biology, Biochemistry Minor
Co-Presenter(s): Nisha Sridhar, Katia Pramono
Faculty Mentor(s): Tyson Barker, Leticia Hayes
Session 5: The Wonders of the Brain
Executive function (EF) is a set of higher-order cognitive skills that support early learning and development . EF is highly influenced by environmental factors such as exposure to stress and social interaction . The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is one of the primary neural regions underlying EF . As the PFC develops during early childhood, the brain begins to lay the groundwork for more complex processing . One neural component that supports EF, feedback-related negativity (FRN), is measurable using electroencephalography (EEG), a device that measures the brain’s electrical activity . FRN is observed following both positive and negative feedback and is generated by the PFC . Although FRN is theorized to represent EF, little is known about the FRN development in early childhood: a period of critical EF development .
We predict that children’s FRN will be positively related to a behavioral measure of EF, which was collected during a previous study . Thus, we propose that FRN will reflect an early neural indicator
of EF . Previous research has used tasks without intermittent reinforcement making it difficult to maintain children’s attention . We will be using the Doors Game, which is a novel feedback-based task providing intermittent random reinforcement to children upon their selection between two doors . This task presents the reward immediately alongside feedback, thus it is more age-appropriate due to its ability to sustain their motivation . As feedback processing serves an important role in early childhood development and may serve as a novel indicator of EF, it is a promising area for research .