Cognitive Development

Cognitive Development is an international journal dedicated to publishing high-quality empirical and theoretical research on the development of cognition across the lifespan, from infancy and childhood through adolescence, adulthood, and aging. The journal’s mission is to advance understanding of the mechanisms and processes underlying cognitive growth, change, and individual differences, including both normative and atypical development, as well as cognitive deterioration, in humans and animal models.

The journal welcomes submissions on a broad range of topics central to cognitive development, including perception and attention, concept and category formation, writing and drawing, fine and gross motor skills, memory and learning processes, language acquisition and development, digital literacy, numerical and spatial cognition, problem solving and decision making, executive functions and metacognition, social cognition and theory of mind, emotion regulation, and the cognitive neuroscience of development. Studies involving atypical development or special populations are considered when they provide significant theoretical and empirical insights.

We publish original empirical articles, theoretical and integrative reviews, meta-analyses, brief reports, and methodological or conceptual papers. A wide range of methodological approaches is supported, including experimental and quasi-experimental studies, longitudinal and cross-sectional designs, training studies, quantified qualitative research, eye-tracking and video analyses, questionnaire and psychometric approaches, neuroimaging and psychophysiological methods, computational modeling, and cross-cultural or comparative studies.

Cognitive Development does not consider studies focused solely on adult populations without addressing developmental change, nor research on cognitive development as it relates to business practices, workplace skills, human resources, or management. Clinical case studies, reports based on university teaching evaluations, and computer software development are also outside the scope of the journal. Purely educational policy or applied studies are only considered if they make a substantial theoretical or innovative empirical contribution.

All submissions are evaluated for theoretical significance, methodological rigor, transparency, innovation, originality, and clarity of presentation. Authors are expected to follow the journal’s guidelines and are strongly encouraged to adopt open science practices, including data sharing, preregistration, and collaborative research.

Benefits to authors We also provide many author benefits, such as free PDFs, a liberal copyright policy, special discounts on Elsevier publications and much more. Please click here for more information on our author services.

Please see our Guide for Authors for information on article submission. If you require any further information or help, please visit our Support Center.