The developmental trajectory of executive functions and their stress sensitivity in adolescence.

This paper aims to review previous findings on the developmental trajectory of core executive functions - attentional control, inhibition, mental shifting, cognitive flexibility, and working memory - in adolescence with special attention to age-related stress-sensitivity in this period. More simple abilities, like attentional control and inhibition, go through a dramatic maturation process between the ages of 10 and 11. This is followed by a final progress, and as a result, after age 13-15 years acute stress deteriorates attentional control performance less, or it may even improve it. Working memory matures later, around 14-15 years, and it reaches the adult level at 17 years. Concerning mental shifting and cognitive flexibility, more maturation points could be identified: word fluency usually reaches full maturation at the age of 13, semantic fluency between the ages of 17 and 18, and general flexibility around 18-19 years. Based on the reviewed papers we could see that acute stress affects executive functions differently during adolescence, depending on how these functions mature. Those functions which develop later, are more sensitive to stress during the entire period of adolescence, and reviewed studies show that acute stress has a deteriorating effect on these functions. At the same time, early matured inhibition and attentional control are enhanced by acute stress in the half of the studies. Other theories and methodological issues are also discussed. Keywords: attentional control; inhibition; shifting; working memory.