Young Minds, Smart Strategies: How Children Decide When to Use External Memory Aids

Under the Cortex

Do young children prefer to rely on their memory, or do they take the easier route and use external aids like lists and reminders? How do they decide when to put in the mental effort and when to lean on available tools?

In this episode of Under the Cortex, host Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum teams up with Zsuzsa Kaldy from the University of Massachusetts Boston. They discuss Kaldy’s study published in APS’s journal Psychological Science addressing how children balance memory with external help. The conversation evolves into what these findings reveal about cognitive development, and cultural differences in learning.

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org.

Send us your thoughts and questions at [email protected]