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The aim of the study was to examine whether cognitive skills are related to persistence. Thus, children's (N = 157, mean age: 5.9 years) persistent and non‐persistent behaviours (i.e., cheating and off‐task) were assessed in an unsolvable task. Additionally, we assessed children's executive functions and temperament. Analysis for persistence showed that cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility predicted children's persistent behaviour, beyond age and temperament. Analyses for non‐persistent behaviours revealed that temperament and weak executive functions predicted cheating, while age predicted off‐task behaviour. Statement of contributionWhat is already known on this subject?So far, persistence has been conceptualized as a temperamental sub‐dimension of self‐regulation.What does this study add?A child's persistence depends not only on temperament but also on cognitive inhibition and cognitive flexibility.There are qualitative differences between the two non‐persistent behaviours cheating and off‐task.While cheating is related to weaker cognitive skills, off‐task behaviour seems mainly age‐related. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developmental research on Gestalt laws has previously revealed that, even as young as infancy, we are bound to group visual elements into unitary structures in accordance with a variety of organizational principles. Here, we focus on the developmental trajectory of both connection‐based and object‐based grouping, and investigate their impact on object formation in participants, aged 9–21 years old (N = 113), using a multiple‐object tracking paradigm. Results reveal a main effect of both age and grouping type, indicating that 9‐ to 21‐year‐olds are sensitive to both connection‐based and object‐based grouping interference, and tracking ability increases with age. In addition to its importance for typical development, these results provide an informative baseline to understand clinical aberrations in this regard. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? The origin of the Gestalt principles is still an ongoing debate: Are they innate, learned over time, or both? Developmental research has revealed how each Gestalt principle has its own trajectory and unique relationship to visual experience. Both connectedness and object‐based grouping play an important role in object formation during childhood. What does this study add? The study identifies how sensitivity to connectedness and object‐based grouping evolves in individuals, aged 9–21 years old. Using multiple‐object tracking, results reveal that the ability to track multiple objects increases with age. These results provide an informative baseline to understand clinical aberrations in different types of grouping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study used a hands‐free eye‐tracking visual search (VS) task to examine possible developmental differences in target detection. Thirty‐two young adults and 27 youth were asked to detect a fearful face (male or female) among a crowd of either neutral or happy faces. Fearful male faces were detected faster than fearful female faces, but only by young adults and only when displayed among neutral faces. Additionally, young adults had shorter scanpath lengths prior to the target detection. Finally, a strong negative correlation emerged between age and detection speed for a male target in a neutral crowd. Using this age‐matched VS task, the study found age differences in the way individuals detect a threat in a social‐related contextual environment, pointing to subtle differences in the emotion–attention interplay during the course of development. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Visual search of threat detection is critical for survival, specifically regarding expressive faces. Visual search efficiency is affected by both stimulus‐driven and higher goal‐directed processes. Stimuli and contextual features affect threat speed detection. What does this study add? A novel task was designed to examine age‐related differences in visual search. Specific stimuli gender and contextual features yielded age‐related differences in threat detection. The study further demonstrates the subtle developmental differences in attention–emotion interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]