The development of nonverbal working memory and executive control processes in adolescents. Child Development, 76, 697–712. D o w n lo ad ed B y: [ Un iv er si ty o f Ma as tr ic ht ] At : :5 N ov em be r 448

The prefrontal cortex modulates executive control processes and structurally matures throughout adolescence. Consistent with these events, prefrontal functions that demand high levels of executive control may mature later than those that require working memory but decreased control. To test this hypothesis, adolescents (9 to 20 years old) completed nonverbal working memory tasks with varying levels of executive demands. Findings suggest that recall-guided action for single units of spatial information develops until 11 to 12 years. The ability to maintain and manipulate multiple spatial units develops until 13 to 15 years. Strategic self-organization de-velops until ages 16 to 17 years. Recognition memory did not appear to develop over this age range. Implications for prefrontal cortex organization by level of processing are discussed. Interest in the development of the prefrontal cortex has intensified in recent years, because the prefrontal cortex orchestrates high-level cognitive functions that support responsible adult behavior. Among these functions are inhibitory control (Diamond, 1990), the ability to integrate past knowledge with future goals (Fuster, 1997), and behavioral flexibilit