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Abstract
Young children’s capacity to monitor and control their thoughts and behaviors
is influenced largely by inhibitory control, which grows rapidly during this age
due to brain maturation. This capacity has important implications for children’s
development, including academic and social outcomes, and has been shown to be
influenced by culture and exposure to adverse life events such as poverty. Research
suggests that this capacity, importantly, may be largely trainable, with appropriate
training programs.
1. Introduction
During the childhood years and into adolescence, the brain grows tremendously,
causing a significant change in cognitive capacities. In later years of childhood and
adolescence, many of the neurological changes correspond with advancements in
perspective taking and reasoning; however, evidence from the early childhood years
suggests that these changes more closely align with advancements in inhibitory
control and executive functions more broadly [1, 2]. However, there are distinct
developmental changes which inform our understanding of inhibitory control and
which merit further discussion. Regardless, these developmental changes have
profound impacts on children’s development overall, including academic and social
outcomes. It is important to recognize, however, that children’s capacities to inhibit
a prepotent response have been shown to vary by culture, as well as exposure to
early adverse life events, and therefore a consideration of environment should be
included when attempting to conduct research in this area or when making impor-
tant policy or curriculum decisions. Nevertheless, research which utilizes inhibitory
control (IC) training specifically within the early childhood ages demonstrates
positive results, with more intensive training yielding more promising results.
Research has consistently demonstrated that the preschool years are a develop-
mental time during which children experience profound growth in their ability to
inhibit an unwanted response [3]. Younger preschool-age children are more likely
to perseverate in their errors across multiple trials [4] by repeating a maladaptive
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Inhibitory Control Training - A Multidisciplinary Approach
behavior—for instance, a child who continues to shout out in class instead of raising
their hand—whereas this pattern declines markedly by age 4. Similarly, 3-year-old
children demonstrate an ability to inhibit an automatic prepotent response on a
Simon Says task (e.g., Go/NoGo task [5]: children are trained to respond to one
stimulus and are trained not to respond to a similar stimulus; see Table 1) for
roughly one in four trials, in comparison to 4-year-old children who were success-
ful on roughly 9 out of 10 trials [6]. Moreover, the impacts of inhibitory control on
children’s cognitive capacities also seem to change as a function of age. For instance,
younger preschool-age children’s inhibitory control capacities strongly predict
their problem-solving strategy use and performance; however, older preschool-age
children’s problem solving is better explained by their working memory capaci-
ties (see Table 1) rather than their inhibitory control abilities [7]. Relatedly, the
development patterns of IC growth may not be limited to simply greater accuracy
on relatively straightforward tasks. Older preschool-age children perform with
greater success on more complicated tasks of IC than their younger peers [1], which
may indicate that using multiple, progressive tasks when assessing IC may reveal
important developmental patterns not captured by using a single task or by using
Inhibitory control (IC) The cognitive capacity to inhibit a prepotent, automatic behavioral
response
Go/NoGo task Children are trained to respond to one stimulus (e.g., “Go” stimuli)
and are trained not to respond to a similar stimulus (“NoGo”
stimuli). This task measures behavioral inhibition
Day/Night Stroop task Children are trained and must complete trials in which they say the
word “night” when presented with an image of a sun on a white
background and say “day” when presented with an image of a moon
on a dark background. This task involves both behavioral inhibition
and cognitive interference
Table 1.
A summary of definitions of the major concepts and techniques.
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A View from the Start: A Review of Inhibitory Control Training in Early Childhood
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88700
multiple similar tasks. Overall, the findings on early childhood IC show robust and
dramatic growth, particularly during the childhood years.
Although researchers agree on the tremendous growth of IC during this devel-
opmental age, there persists disagreement as to the specific nature of IC, and execu-
tive functions, during this time. Executive functions (EF) refer to the constellation
of foundational cognitive capacities, such as inhibitory control, working memory,
and attention [1], which allow for later emergence of reasoning and problem solv-
ing. In middle childhood and beyond, these executive function capacities can be
considered as increasingly discrete processing mechanisms; however, during early
childhood, these patterns remain more nebulous, and studies using confirmatory
factor analysis have shown developmental differences in factor emergence and
persistent factor unification into the childhood years. For instance, during the pre-
school years (broadly, ages 3 years to 6 years), studies using multiple assessments of
inhibitory control, attention, and working memory yield a single unitary construct
of executive function or inhibition generally [8–12], whereas studies of middle
childhood have discerned multiple discrete factors, including working memory and
attention shifting [13], and this trend continues and expands into later childhood
and adolescence (see [14]).
The prevailing argument is that tasks of IC during the early childhood years
necessitate activation of multiple other components of EF. take, for instance, the
Day/Night Stroop task (see [15]; Table 1) in which a child is trained and must
complete trials in which they say the word “night” when presented with an image
of a sun on a white background and say “day” when presented with an image of
a moon on a dark background. In this task, IC is typically measured by accuracy,
with measurements of response time frequently included as well. This task clearly
requires the child to inhibit the automatic response of verbalizing the association
they have made between the sun and it being daytime, or between the moon being
present during nighttime, and thus is inarguably a task of IC. However, some argue
that this task measures additional facets of EF simply by the nature of the task. For
instance, a child must have sustained attention throughout the assessment, and if
the child loses focus for even a moment, the measurement of response time could
be conflated, leading some scholars to argue that the attentional component of EF
predicts IC [3, 16]. Similarly, the child must work to keep the rules of the moon/
day and sun/night matching in the forefront of their mind during the assessment,
and if they do not, then the accuracy measure could be conflated with working
memory. Many researchers have argued, therefore, that the various EF components
are highly integrated during the early childhood years and that these components
emerge as more distinct with age and experience [1, 14].
As shown by the previous example, it is difficult for researchers to disentangle
the various components of EF, from a measurement perspective, in early childhood.
Researchers’ understanding and measurement of inhibitory control during the early
childhood years should therefore be sensitive to the developmental nature of such
phenomena and should perhaps consider using indices of a variety of executive
function capacities. However, as described previously [14], a common conceptu-
alization of EF in the early childhood literature seems to imply that EF and IC are
analogous at this development time (e.g., [17]) or that IC developmentally precedes
other domains of EF (e.g., [16]). Although IC contributes largely to early childhood
EF, as demonstrated in the previous example, it may be problematic to consider these
as synonymous. One argument in support of this claim is that children’s task perfor-
mance on EF tasks most closely replicates issues of IC—that is, a child will persist in
making prepotent errors, a classic demonstration of immature IC, while also activat-
ing other areas of EF, such as attention, working memory, etc. Although several
arguments have been proposed to counter the position of equivocating EF with IC,
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Inhibitory Control Training - A Multidisciplinary Approach
most pertinent to the current chapter may be that IC itself may be multidimensional.
Referring again to the aforementioned example, many researchers consider response
time in the Day-Night Stroop task to be a measure of cognitive interference (sometimes
referred to as interference control), which refers to attempts to suppress interference
from competing stimuli, in contrast to behavioral inhibition which requires suppress-
ing a behavioral response for a more optimal response [18, 19]. That is, the construct
of inhibitory control as it pertains to developmental changes during the early child-
hood years requires both the cognitive power to limit attention to distractor stimuli
and the behavioral power to engage an appropriate response.
Turning to developing an appreciation for the role of IC for holistic develop-
ment, the capacity for IC has important implications in terms of development
across a number of domains [20]. For instance, although IC has been shown to
predict children’s academic achievement generally throughout the childhood years
[21], strong IC consistently predicts more proficient mathematical knowledge
[16, 22–24] and numerical strategy use [25]. Moreover, IC has been implicated in
children’s emergent literacy proficiency [16, 24] and language development [26].
The development of IC during the early childhood years additionally has profound
implications for children’s social and emotional development [27], such as the
emergence and development of social perspective taking [28], problem solving
and emotional control [27], and suppressing disruptive behaviors and aggression
[11]. As such, IC should be considered by researchers and practitioners alike for the
implications this capacity may hold across areas of maladaptive academic and social
development.
Research methodologies employed for assessing IC during the early childhood
years can vary considerably, and each assessment offers a wealth of strengths yet,
as mentioned previously, may be incomplete on its own. Therefore, much of the
research studies in this area use more than one type of assessment or multiple
assessments with considerable methodological overlap. An important consideration
in measurement of IC, indeed of any cognitive faculty, during the early childhood
years is the developmental appropriateness of the task (see [8], for review). For
instance, children in this age range are often concurrently experiencing emerg-
ing literacy skills and are often not yet proficient readers; therefore, it would be
inappropriate to use a task which requires even low reading requirements, as such
a task would likely require a cognitive load too great to allow for successful task
completion. Moreover, such a task when used with an emerging reader would
result in contaminated measurement in that task performance may indicate a
lack of understanding the rules of the task, the lack of proficiency in reading, or
inhibitory control. Similarly, tasks to be used on a study of early childhood should
be rather straightforward, without overly complicated instructions or numerous
steps. Therefore, much of the research studies in the area of inhibitory control that
focus on early child development utilize tasks or games which require no reading,
with simple instructions provided to the child verbally and repeated if necessary,
and these tasks typically include a generous training time to ensure that the child
understands and can perform the task.
Many of the commonly employed tasks resemble that of the Day/Night Stroop
task [15, 29] and the Go/NoGo task [1, 5, 19, 30], both of which were described in
the previous paragraphs. Importantly, these two tasks differ in terms of cognitive
interference with regard to the expectations for children’s behavioral responses.
Specifically, the Day/Night Stroop task involves embedded rule use, thus requires
children to produce a verbal response to multiple stimuli, and therefore requires
that the children process and act on multiple rules (i.e., if moon, then “day,” but if
sun, then “night”), whereas the Go/NoGo task only requires a behavioral response
to a single stimulus (e.g., if “Simon Says,” then response; if not, then no response).
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88700
This distinction has led some to argue that the Day/Night Stroop task may be more
complex particularly for younger children than other tasks, and therefore perfor-
mance on this and similar tasks may be indicative of greater IC capacities compared
with Go/NoGo tasks (see, e.g., [31, 32]).
Consistent with the recommendation noted previously regarding the need to
use multiple indices of IC when attempting to correctly assess children’s capacities,
many researchers employ the use of neurological testing, such as an electroencepha-
logram (EEG), in concert with a behavioral task, such as the Go/NoGo task (e.g.,
[30]). Using neurological measurement, such as EEG, allows researchers to pre-
cisely measure brain activity during the behavioral tasks, which provides for a more
complete examination and consideration of IC as a cognitive capacity particularly
from a developmental perspective. That is, as the brain is experiencing tremendous
growth during the early childhood years, it is important to capture how such physi-
cal growth corresponds with cognitive growth, and this is perhaps best done by
measuring neural activity during a cognitive task.
Overall, EF generally, and inhibitory control specifically, undergoes dramatic
growth during the preschool years, which has important implications for their
development overall [1, 2]. Although EF is discernable as more discrete constructs
in later ages of development, this has not been consistently demonstrated during
the early childhood years [8–12], and thus researchers should consider possibly
utilizing multiple tasks, including neurological assessments if possible [30], to pro-
vide a more comprehensive understanding of IC during the early childhood years.
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Inhibitory Control Training - A Multidisciplinary Approach
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Inhibitory Control Training - A Multidisciplinary Approach
that the control condition was not allowed to repeat, by request of the school, as
the teachers and parents noted such profound change in terms of academics and
student behavior that the school refused to continue the project without full imple-
mentation of the program in all classrooms. In concert with findings from more
traditional samples which included less intensive training, these outcomes would
indicate that children from low-income families might be an especially important
area for future research, given the overwhelming strength of the results.
Although studies using IC training with children of incarcerated parents, or
children who have experienced abuse or neglect, were not revealed during the
current literature search, the previously discussed research of IC training during
early childhood could be extended to these populations [45]. For instance, research
on treatment approaches for anxiety and depression (common outcomes of trauma)
with adults has shown that training individuals to develop better self-regulatory
executive processes, such as attention, have shown promising results (see [45] for
discussion). Given that children’s EF faculties are more nebulous and entangled
than adults, it stands to reason that such approaches would yield additionally
promising results during the early childhood years.
Moreover, such intervention approaches might be promising for researchers
working in clinical settings. For instance, mindfulness training approaches that
capitalize on EF processes, such as attentional focus, for children with anxiety have
proven effective in reducing anxiety symptomology [59]. Such training has proven
effective for children from low-income families as well [60], with positive effects
extending beyond advanced EF development to include positive socio-emotional
and behavioral changes as well. However, much of the research in this area has been
conducted with older children, and examinations of the promise of mindfulness
training during the early childhood years may not yet exist. This may be an impor-
tant area for future research, as the implications for positive outcomes may be more
robust with earlier intervention.
Overall, findings with regard to improving child outcomes during the early child-
hood years as they relate to IC training suggest that IC training may be effective to vary-
ing degrees. Although a few studies showed limited transfer effects, the most promising
findings come from studies which implemented a broader EF training program rather
than those which utilized specific IC training. Additionally, research studies with
longer training programs, such as the 1-year program discussed above, yield stronger
effects in terms of global child outcomes than did shorter programs. Studies involving
brain imaging have also shown positive outcomes in terms of changes in brain activity,
indicating that such training may be important for effecting long-term change.
3. Conclusions
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A View from the Start: A Review of Inhibitory Control Training in Early Childhood
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88700
regions, many researchers use these tasks in combination with brain imaging [30],
providing important insights into developmental changes taking place in brain and
neuronal activity.
Importantly, the current chapter includes much literature on EF broadly rather
than focusing specifically on IC and IC training. Although this is consistent with
the current conceptualization of IC during this developmental time within the
literature, this may have resulted in certain findings and trainings being included in
the current discussion with which some researchers may disagree. Additionally, the
current chapter focuses narrowly on a specific developmental window and thus is
not representative of the research on IC across childhood.
For transparency, the literature review for the current chapter used the following
databases: Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science. The keywords were
executive function, inhibitory control (training), working memory, sustained atten-
tion, cognitive development, self-regulation, preschoolers, early childhood, children,
cross-cultural, and risk population. Specifically, inhibitory control is a broad term in
the research procedure, which has been expanded and is not limited to the executive
function and cognitive development [61]. For ease of understanding, an at-risk popu-
lation was defined as any potential risk factors (i.e., poverty or low income, neighbor-
hood violence, family violence, family maltreatment, low social status, low education
background, rural area). However, and as is the case with many reviews, the current
chapter does not include findings from unpublished works, and thus the positive
support for IC training as discussed here may be an artifact of publication bias.
Nevertheless, in creating IC training programs, much of the research has
shown positive outcomes across a variety of training programs; however, as is to
be expected, more promising and profound results accompany programs with
more intensive training with longer durations [50–58]. Such training programs
have proven effective across cultures and changes in the environment [52], includ-
ing children from low-income backgrounds and children who have experienced
profound early adverse life events. Although little research to date has examined
IC training during early childhood in clinical samples, extending from the work
discussed in this chapter, it would follow that IC training broadly, and perhaps
mindfulness training specifically, may yield positive outcomes across domains.
Conflict of interest
Author details
© 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms
of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/
by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is properly cited.
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Inhibitory Control Training - A Multidisciplinary Approach
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