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The Emergence of Episodic Foresight and Its Consequences
Author(s) -
Suddendorf Thomas
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
child development perspectives
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1750-8606
pISSN - 1750-8592
DOI - 10.1111/cdep.12233
Subject(s) - futures studies , psychology , cognition , scrutiny , episodic memory , cognitive psychology , cognitive development , developmental psychology , neuroscience , political science , artificial intelligence , computer science , law
Imagining future events and adjusting current behavior accordingly is a hallmark of human cognition. The development of such episodic foresight is attracting increasing research attention. In this article, I review a selection of recent work on the emergence of episodic foresight and its role in different domains, including learning, deliberate practice, affective forecasting, intertemporal choices, and anxiety. Studies suggest that during the preschool years, children begin to consider future scenarios, enabling them to plan, prepare, and shape their future, but many other consequences, such as the role of developing foresight in anticipating hazards, remain unexamined. The potential predictive effects of early individual differences in episodic foresight on later cognitive capacities and developmental outcomes deserve closer scrutiny.