Our perspective is not dissimilar from Nelson s notion of

Our perspective is not dissimilar from Nelson\'s notion of interactive specialization of different organizing social forces at different times in development that shape social development. However, we place as much emphasis on evolutionary-based expectations of the social environment as the environment itself, which we posit may underlie significant changes in the fexofenadine hydrochloride Supplier to enhance receptivity to environmental inputs and facilitate the capacity for meeting changing social pressures during this developmental window (). The imbalance framework emphasizes shifts in the flow of information through brain networks that are continually being refined with experience and maturation. Likewise, Shulman and colleagues acknowledge that insights into the neurodevelopmental mechanisms of risky behavior can be gained from examining brain connectivity and circuit-level coordination. We would additionally suggest that the dual systems account may benefit from developmental frameworks that acknowledge dynamic and hierarchical development of brain circuitry to explain changes in behavior throughout adolescence. The foundational brain systems that support these behaviors are not orthogonal—they are interactive and integrative. Decades of research in human and nonhuman models of goal-directed behavior emphasize parallel, integrative basal ganglia thalamocortical loops that integrate signals of value, context, and inhibitory demands to select goal-directed actions (). Perhaps the most prominent difference between dual systems and imbalance models is how one would the study of brain mechanisms. Rather than focusing on regions () or nodes (e.g., ventral striatum, prefrontal cortex) this approach would examine developmental shifts in the flow of information and output within and across circuits. Viewing developmental findings through a circuit lens is not only faithful to the organization of the underlying biological systems and to knowledge gained from elegant nonhuman studies, but it readily accommodates key findings demonstrating how the effects of motivation signals on cognitive control change over development (e.g., ). Collectively, understanding the cascade of changes in behavior throughout adolescence may be most informed by focusing on temporal changes in functional connectivity within and between brain circuits. An over-simplified illustration of these possible changes in circuitry with development is below (). For the sake of example, this figure highlights specific changes within and between medial and lateral prefrontal circuits implicated in different computations and functions important for self-control. The medial prefrontal cortex, implicated in emotion regulation can modulate activity in both the amygdala and ventral striatum to suppress outputs that otherwise lead to emotive responses and actions. The ventral striatum, a region implicated in learning and prediction of rewarding outcomes, also receives inputs from the basolateral amygdala. The amygdala is important in learning the emotional significance of cues in the environment, and can facilitate ventral striatal activity through its direct inputs, leading to motivated action (). With development and experience, connectivity within prefrontal corticosubcortical circuitry is strengthened and provides a mechanism for top-down modulation of the subcortical output that diminishes emotive processes and habitual actions observed more subcortically. Subsequently, the lateral prefrontal cortex implicated in cognitive control and goal oriented behavior can modulate these frontolimbic circuits via cortico-cortical projections from lateral to medial prefrontal circuits. Thus, it is the interconnections among these regions that change with development to integrate regulation of emotional responses. Examining each of these regions alone and how they function in isolation could fail to identify the key developing features of these systems. Incorporating circuit-based changes with development may improve our understanding of why adolescents engage in the behaviors they do, which situations compromise self-control in adolescents the most (), and how development of this capacity can be protracted and vary by emotional context ().