This repository contains the source code for our paper "Two Systems, Two Timelines: Computational Evidence for Dissociable Development in Inhibitory Control Across Childhood and Adolescence," accepted by Child Development.
Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of the study design and analysis pipelines.
This study examined inhibitory control development in two samples of Chinese children: a primary sample (n = 1,122; 45.5% female; 91.9% Han, Mage = 12.42 years, range: 6.0–18.7) with 6-month longitudinal follow-up and an independent replication sample (n = 1,026; 45.1% female; 90.8% Han, Mage = 12.44 years, range: 6.1–18.8). Generalized Additive Models applied to Stroop and Go/No-Go tasks revealed four-phase nonlinear developmental trajectories. Response inhibition stabilized by 13.4 years, while interference inhibition developed until 15.8 years. Hierarchical drift diffusion modeling showed that interference inhibition developed through enhanced information accumulation (drift rate), whereas response inhibition developed through enhanced response bias control (starting point). Age-related processing speed improvements suggest shared foundational mechanisms. The findings contribute to a decision-computational framework.
Keywords: inhibitory control; nonlinear development; drift diffusion model; generalized additive model; machine learning
Zhang, T., Gong, Y., & Zhao, X. (in press). Two Systems, Two Timelines: Computational Evidence for Dissociable Development in Inhibitory Control Across Childhood and Adolescence. Child Development.
Tongyi Zhang1, Yajie Gong1, and Xin Zhao1*
1School of Psychology, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, China
*Corresponding author: Xin Zhao (psyzhaoxin@nwnu.edu.cn)
School of Psychology, Northwest Normal University, No. 967 Anning East Road, Anning District, Lanzhou 730070, P. R. China