Stop Saying That It Is Wrong! Psychophysiological, Cognitive, and Metacognitive Markers of Children’s Sensitivity to Punishment

Neurodevelopmental evidence suggests that children’s main decision-making strategy is to avoid options likely to induce punishment. However, the cognitive and affective factors contributing to children’s avoidance to high punishment frequency remain unknown. The present study explored psychophysiolo...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: González-Gadea, María Luz, Scheres, Anouk, Tobon, Carlos Andres, Damm, Juliane, Báez, Sandra, Huepe, David, Marino, Julián, Marder, Sandra Esther, Manes, Facundo, Abrevaya, Sofía, Ibánez, Agustín
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:Argentina
Institución:Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas de la Provincia de Buenos Aires
Repositorio:CIC Digital (CICBA)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.cic.gba.gob.ar:11746/5806
Acceso en línea:https://digital.cic.gba.gob.ar/handle/11746/5806
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Psicología
decision-making
skin conductance response
punishment sensitivity
metacognition
Descripción
Sumario:Neurodevelopmental evidence suggests that children’s main decision-making strategy is to avoid options likely to induce punishment. However, the cognitive and affective factors contributing to children’s avoidance to high punishment frequency remain unknown. The present study explored psychophysiological, cognitive, and metacognitive processes associated with sensitivity to punishment frequency. We evaluated 54 participants (between 8 and 15 years old) with a modified Iowa Gambling Task for children (IGT-C) which included options with varying long-term profit and punishment frequencies. Skin conductance responses (SCRs) were recorded during this task. Additionally, we assessed IGT-C metacognitive knowledge, fluid intelligence, and executive functions. Participants exhibited behavioral avoidance and high anticipatory SCRs to options with high frequency of punishment. Moreover, age, IGT-C metacognitive knowledge, and inhibitory control were associated with individual differences in sensitivity to punishment frequency. Our results suggest that children’s preference for infrequently punished decisions is partially explained by psychophysiological signals as well as task complexity and development of cognitive control.