Brain Development: Function

Advances in brain-imaging techniques have enabled cognitive neuroscientists to investigate the emergence of cognition in relation to brain development. This line of work has led to the advancement of three views concerning the functional development of the human brain during infancy and childhood: (1) the maturational view, (2) the interactive specialization view, and (3) the skill-learning view. In this article, findings from imaging, neuropsychological, and behavioral studies on the development of face processing, working memory, long-term memory, and language are described in reference to these views. From these examples, it becomes clear that all three theories of functional development are valuable for our understanding of brain-behavior relations.