The Four Steps of the Development of the Cognitive Control System

Abstract

Thinking evolved in order to develop the ability for anticipation to guide the physical actions necessary for survival. In other words, we “think” in order to control and anticipate the outcomes of what we do; we “think” to control the motor system; we did not develop the ability to think for the primary purpose of thinking per se. Four steps describe the development of this cognitive control system. Motor activity, and control over it, comes first. It is fundamental to survival, development and adaptation. Second, movement and cognition are coincidental. This is evident in the exploratory behavior of the toddler. A child learns about the world by discovering objects in the environment and learning about how to use them. The “value” of these objects represents reward characteristics. All of the properties of objects are learned by interacting with them. So in a way, this interactive “learning” occurs by coincidence. Third, motor activity and cognition co-exist. Through this interactive learning process, children start to form simple “intentions” about what they want and what they want to do because they learned about reward contingencies and they use that anticipatory cognition to “control” behavior. At this point, movement and cognition are inexorably linked, so there is no “duality” between movement and cognition. At this early stage in development, behavior is highly dependent upon “reward,” and this is supported by the developmental anatomical trajectory of large scale brain systems. Fourth, these initial activities and cognitions become routine, such as feeding and playing. At this the time, the behaviors that were learned are automatic. Movement, or activity, then rises above cognition. These behaviors become routine, and conscious cognitive awareness and explicit control are no longer necessary for those behaviors. Cognition then resides a notch below automatic behavior. This four stage process repeats itself, over and over again, throughout the course of ontogeny. In fact, this summarizes the novelty-routinization principle that is evident throughout the lifespan.