Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference
Performance on the task-switching paradigm is greatly affected by the amount of conflict between tasks. Compared to adults, children appear to be particularly influenced by this conflict, suggesting that the ability to resolve interference between tasks improves with age. We used the task-switching...
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| Format: | Article |
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American Psychological Association
2009
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1121/ |
| _version_ | 1848790541137870848 |
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| author | Cragg, Lucy Nation, Kate |
| author_facet | Cragg, Lucy Nation, Kate |
| author_sort | Cragg, Lucy |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Performance on the task-switching paradigm is greatly affected by the amount of conflict between tasks. Compared to adults, children appear to be particularly influenced by this conflict, suggesting that the ability to resolve interference between tasks improves with age. We used the task-switching paradigm to investigate how this ability develops in mid-childhood. Experiment 1 compared 5- to 8-year-olds’ and 9- to 11-year-olds’ ability to switch between decisions about the colour of an object and its shape. The 5- to 8-year-olds were slower to switch task and experienced more interference from the irrelevant task than the 9-to 11-year-olds, suggesting a developmental improvement in resolving conflict between tasks during mid-childhood. Experiment 2 explored this further, examining the influence of stimulus and response interference at different ages. This was done by separating the colour and shape dimensions of the stimulus and reducing overlap between responses. The results supported the development of conflict resolution in task-switching during mid-childhood. They also revealed that a complex interplay of factors, including the tasks used and previous experience with the task, affected children’s shifting performance. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:14:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-1121 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:14:15Z |
| publishDate | 2009 |
| publisher | American Psychological Association |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-11212020-05-04T20:26:11Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1121/ Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference Cragg, Lucy Nation, Kate Performance on the task-switching paradigm is greatly affected by the amount of conflict between tasks. Compared to adults, children appear to be particularly influenced by this conflict, suggesting that the ability to resolve interference between tasks improves with age. We used the task-switching paradigm to investigate how this ability develops in mid-childhood. Experiment 1 compared 5- to 8-year-olds’ and 9- to 11-year-olds’ ability to switch between decisions about the colour of an object and its shape. The 5- to 8-year-olds were slower to switch task and experienced more interference from the irrelevant task than the 9-to 11-year-olds, suggesting a developmental improvement in resolving conflict between tasks during mid-childhood. Experiment 2 explored this further, examining the influence of stimulus and response interference at different ages. This was done by separating the colour and shape dimensions of the stimulus and reducing overlap between responses. The results supported the development of conflict resolution in task-switching during mid-childhood. They also revealed that a complex interplay of factors, including the tasks used and previous experience with the task, affected children’s shifting performance. American Psychological Association 2009-09 Article PeerReviewed Cragg, Lucy and Nation, Kate (2009) Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference. Developmental Psychology, 45 (5). pp. 1465-1479. ISSN 0012-1649 executive function task-switching development congruence http://doi.apa.org/getdoi.cfm?doi=10.1037/a0015360 10.1037/a0015360 10.1037/a0015360 10.1037/a0015360 |
| spellingShingle | executive function task-switching development congruence Cragg, Lucy Nation, Kate Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title | Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title_full | Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title_fullStr | Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title_full_unstemmed | Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title_short | Shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| title_sort | shifting development in mid-childhood: the influence of between-task interference |
| topic | executive function task-switching development congruence |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1121/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1121/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1121/ |