On the Neuroscience of Self-Regulation in Children With Disruptive Behavior Problems: Implications for Education. (December 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Woltering, Steven; Shi, Qinxin
• Is Part Of: Review of educational research. Volume 86:Number 4(2016:Dec.)
• Page Start: 1085
• Page End: 1110
• Publication Date: 2016-12
• Subjects: treatment -- development -- neuroscience -- education -- self-regulation; Education -- Periodicals; Education -- United States -- Periodicals; Education -- Bibliography -- Periodicals; 370.7
• DOI: 10.3102/0034654316673722
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0034-6543

Abstract

Self-regulation is increasingly recognized as a key predictor of academic and social competence. A multidisciplinary understanding of this ability is timely and can strengthen theory and practice. The present review aims to inform educators on what cognitive neuroscience can teach us about self-regulation. To do so, we will focus on a decade-long research program examining children with disruptive behavior problems and their peers, and ask whether neural measures of self-regulation can (a) covary with individual differences in behavioral measures of self-regulation, (b) trace developmental patterns, and (c) predict or trace behavioral change with successful treatment of disruptive behavior problems. We show that several studies begin to converge on a set of neural measures derived from the prefrontal cortex that can be consistently linked to processes of self-regulation. Next, we will discuss what these measures mean from a cognitive neuroscience perspective and how this knowledge could influence and/or support psychological models relevant to education.