Cognitive control (dis)engagement during explicit learning in children.

Overview

As we learn a new skill explicitly (e.g., learning how to play the piano), we first need to engage a lot of cognitive control to focus our attention on the relevant information and actions. However, as proficiency increases, cognitive control needs to be disengaged in order to automatise the newly learned skill.

In adults, cognitive control disengagement with learning is evidenced by two changes in the EEG data: (1) a progressive reduction in frontal theta power across blocks of trials (slow timescale), and (2) a reduction in alpha power suppression across trials within each block (fast timescale). As children do not engage cognitive control as flexibly as adults, they may not show as efficient disengagement of cognitive control, potentially hampering automatization of the newly learned skills.

Reflection

Through this project, I gained hands-on experience collecting both behavioural and EEG data in paediatric populations (age 4-8).

Discovering special techniques in cognitive neuroscience was a spark. I was mesmerised by how researchers could translate the inner workings of the human mind into brilliant, colourful brain maps, and I resolved then and there to become a cognitive neuroscientist.

Reference

Huycke, P., Verbeke, P., Boehler, C. N., & Verguts, T. (2021). Theta and alpha power across fast and slow timescales in cognitive control. European Journal of Neuroscience, 54(2), 4581-4594.