Longitudinal studies trace the unfolding of abilities within the same individuals and can reveal gradual shifts hidden by cross-sectional snapshots. The longitudinal work described here found a decline in implicit visual statistical learning from childhood into early adolescence, along with wide individual differences. That pattern links to executive functions measured later, suggesting that brain and cognitive systems reorganize with age and that task specifics shape what we observe.
For anyone curious about how learning systems support lifelong potential, this debate matters. It prompts questions about which methods reveal real change, how cognitive control and pattern learning interact, and how educators and parents might recognize diverse developmental paths. Follow the full article to see how this evidence reshapes our view of learning across childhood and what it implies for nurturing growth and inclusion.
Abstract
In a recent article in Cognitive Science, Rogachev et al. (2025) presented a cross-sectional investigation of visual statistical learning (SL) in children aged 3–9 years and concluded that implicit SL remains stable across early childhood. They cited our longitudinal study (Tóth-Fáber et al., 2024) as supporting this conclusion. Here, we clarify that this interpretation is incorrect. Using a longitudinal design tracking the same individuals from ages 7 to 14, we demonstrated a reliable developmental decline in implicit SL, along with substantial interindividual variability. We further showed that executive functions measured at age 14 predict individual developmental trajectories of SL, indicating a dynamic reorganization of learning systems with maturation. Importantly, tasks used to measure SL inevitably recruit multiple cognitive processes, and differences in these task demands can substantially influence observed developmental trajectories. We argue that longitudinal and cross-sectional designs yield qualitatively different evidence about developmental change. Longitudinal evidence and relatively process-pure measures are, therefore, essential for accurately characterizing developmental dynamics in SL.
