{"paper_id":"3c5c70e5-e425-4708-8172-e307fb04f545","body_text":"Developmental Trajectories of Prefrontal Activation Underlying Emotional Inhibitory Control from Adolescence to Young Adulthood: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Developmental Trajectories of Prefrontal Activation Underlying Emotional Inhibitory Control from Adolescence to Young Adulthood: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study Tingting Chen, Lei Jiang, Rou Wen, Changhao Jiang This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8064816/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Understanding the neural maturation of emotional inhibitory control (IC) during adolescence and young adulthood is critical, yet remains understudied. To address this, we examined age-related changes in prefrontal activation during an emotional Flanker task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Methods Twenty-six adolescents (ages 13–16, 15 male) and thirty young adults (ages 18–22, 16 male) completed an emotional Flanker task while behavioral responses and fNIRS data were recorded. Results Both groups exhibited a significant emotional Flanker effect, with slower responses on incongruent than congruent trials. fNIRS results revealed distinct developmental patterns in prefrontal activation. Adolescents exhibited pronounced O 2 Hb changes predominantly in the right DLPFC, suggesting a localized and right-lateralized response to emotional conflict. In contrast, young adults showed a more symmetrical and integrated a DLPFC activation pattern, reflecting greater neural coordination and maturation of the inhibitory control network. Conclusions These findings indicate a developmental transition from focal, right-dominant prefrontal engagement in adolescence to more distributed bilateral recruitment in young adulthood, marking refinement in neural mechanisms underlying emotional IC. By delineating normative trajectories of prefrontal activation, this study establishes a developmental benchmark that may facilitate the identification of atypical neural profiles and associated disruptions in emotion–cognition regulation among individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. Adolescence Developmental trajectories Emotional inhibitory control fNIRS Prefrontal cortex Young adulthood Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 23 Feb, 2026 Reviews received at journal 15 Feb, 2026 Reviews received at journal 03 Feb, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 03 Feb, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 01 Feb, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 08 Dec, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 08 Dec, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 12 Nov, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 12 Nov, 2025 First submitted to journal 08 Nov, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {\"props\":{\"pageProps\":{\"initialData\":{\"identity\":\"rs-8064816\",\"acceptedTermsAndConditions\":true,\"allowDirectSubmit\":false,\"archivedVersions\":[],\"articleType\":\"Research Article\",\"associatedPublications\":[],\"authors\":[{\"id\":558318799,\"identity\":\"fa539bb9-6ac8-4069-a836-75d73a2d7ba8\",\"order_by\":0,\"name\":\"Tingting Chen\",\"email\":\"\",\"orcid\":\"\",\"institution\":\"Beijing Dance Academy\",\"correspondingAuthor\":false,\"prefix\":\"\",\"firstName\":\"Tingting\",\"middleName\":\"\",\"lastName\":\"Chen\",\"suffix\":\"\"},{\"id\":558318800,\"identity\":\"bc6d6176-503d-4930-9cf2-8721165a41a0\",\"order_by\":1,\"name\":\"Lei 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Study\",\"fulltext\":[],\"fulltextSource\":\"\",\"fullText\":\"\",\"funders\":[],\"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow\":false,\"hasManuscriptDocX\":false,\"hasOptedInToPreprint\":true,\"hasPassedJournalQc\":\"\",\"hasAnyPriority\":false,\"hideJournal\":false,\"highlight\":\"\",\"institution\":\"\",\"isAcceptedByJournal\":true,\"isAuthorSuppliedPdf\":true,\"isDeskRejected\":\"\",\"isHiddenFromSearch\":false,\"isInQc\":false,\"isInWorkflow\":false,\"isPdf\":true,\"isPdfUpToDate\":true,\"isWithdrawnOrRetracted\":false,\"journal\":{\"display\":true,\"email\":\"info@researchsquare.com\",\"identity\":\"behavioral-and-brain-functions\",\"isNatureJournal\":false,\"hasQc\":true,\"allowDirectSubmit\":false,\"externalIdentity\":\"babf\",\"sideBox\":\"Learn more about [Behavioral and Brain Functions](http://behavioralandbrainfunctions.biomedcentral.com)\",\"snPcode\":\"12993\",\"submissionUrl\":\"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/12993/3\",\"title\":\"Behavioral and Brain Functions\",\"twitterHandle\":\"@BBF_Journal\",\"acdcEnabled\":true,\"dfaEnabled\":true,\"editorialSystem\":\"em\",\"reportingPortfolio\":\"BMC/SO AJ\",\"inReviewEnabled\":true,\"inReviewRevisionsEnabled\":true},\"keywords\":\"Adolescence, Developmental trajectories, Emotional inhibitory control, fNIRS, Prefrontal cortex, Young adulthood\",\"lastPublishedDoi\":\"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8064816/v1\",\"lastPublishedDoiUrl\":\"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8064816/v1\",\"license\":{\"name\":\"CC BY 4.0\",\"url\":\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/\"},\"manuscriptAbstract\":\"\\u003ch2\\u003eBackground\\u003c/h2\\u003e\\u003cp\\u003eUnderstanding the neural maturation of emotional inhibitory control (IC) during adolescence and young adulthood is critical, yet remains understudied. To address this, we examined age-related changes in prefrontal activation during an emotional Flanker task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).\\u003c/p\\u003e\\u003ch2\\u003eMethods\\u003c/h2\\u003e\\u003cp\\u003eTwenty-six adolescents (ages 13\\u0026ndash;16, 15 male) and thirty young adults (ages 18\\u0026ndash;22, 16 male) completed an emotional Flanker task while behavioral responses and fNIRS data were recorded.\\u003c/p\\u003e\\u003ch2\\u003eResults\\u003c/h2\\u003e\\u003cp\\u003eBoth groups exhibited a significant emotional Flanker effect, with slower responses on incongruent than congruent trials. fNIRS results revealed distinct developmental patterns in prefrontal activation. Adolescents exhibited pronounced O\\u003csub\\u003e2\\u003c/sub\\u003eHb changes predominantly in the right DLPFC, suggesting a localized and right-lateralized response to emotional conflict. In contrast, young adults showed a more symmetrical and integrated a DLPFC activation pattern, reflecting greater neural coordination and maturation of the inhibitory control network.\\u003c/p\\u003e\\u003ch2\\u003eConclusions\\u003c/h2\\u003e\\u003cp\\u003eThese findings indicate a developmental transition from focal, right-dominant prefrontal engagement in adolescence to more distributed bilateral recruitment in young adulthood, marking refinement in neural mechanisms underlying emotional IC. By delineating normative trajectories of prefrontal activation, this study establishes a developmental benchmark that may facilitate the identification of atypical neural profiles and associated disruptions in emotion\\u0026ndash;cognition regulation among individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders.\\u003c/p\\u003e\",\"manuscriptTitle\":\"Developmental Trajectories of Prefrontal Activation Underlying Emotional Inhibitory Control from Adolescence to Young Adulthood: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study\",\"msid\":\"\",\"msnumber\":\"\",\"nonDraftVersions\":[{\"code\":1,\"date\":\"2025-12-11 16:01:36\",\"doi\":\"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8064816/v1\",\"editorialEvents\":[{\"type\":\"communityComments\",\"content\":0},{\"type\":\"decision\",\"content\":\"Revision requested\",\"date\":\"2026-02-23T18:36:05+00:00\",\"index\":\"\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"editorInvitedReview\",\"content\":\"\",\"date\":\"2026-02-15T20:42:15+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"editorInvitedReview\",\"content\":\"\",\"date\":\"2026-02-03T11:36:29+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"reviewerAgreed\",\"content\":\"122694022749155072583094349847795161379\",\"date\":\"2026-02-03T11:35:09+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"reviewerAgreed\",\"content\":\"90081823765803315093139787347794837182\",\"date\":\"2026-02-01T11:34:40+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"reviewerAgreed\",\"content\":\"216495327494228534664969087449215958295\",\"date\":\"2026-01-14T11:59:31+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"reviewerAgreed\",\"content\":\"207091732716287744084599560970478138724\",\"date\":\"2025-12-08T19:42:47+00:00\",\"index\":\"hide\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"reviewersInvited\",\"content\":\"\",\"date\":\"2025-12-08T14:52:34+00:00\",\"index\":\"\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"editorAssigned\",\"content\":\"\",\"date\":\"2025-11-12T05:48:32+00:00\",\"index\":\"\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"checksComplete\",\"content\":\"\",\"date\":\"2025-11-12T05:48:10+00:00\",\"index\":\"\",\"fulltext\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"submitted\",\"content\":\"Behavioral and Brain Functions\",\"date\":\"2025-11-08T15:01:14+00:00\",\"index\":\"\",\"fulltext\":\"\"}],\"status\":\"published\",\"journal\":{\"display\":true,\"email\":\"info@researchsquare.com\",\"identity\":\"behavioral-and-brain-functions\",\"isNatureJournal\":false,\"hasQc\":true,\"allowDirectSubmit\":false,\"externalIdentity\":\"babf\",\"sideBox\":\"Learn more about [Behavioral and Brain Functions](http://behavioralandbrainfunctions.biomedcentral.com)\",\"snPcode\":\"12993\",\"submissionUrl\":\"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/12993/3\",\"title\":\"Behavioral and Brain Functions\",\"twitterHandle\":\"@BBF_Journal\",\"acdcEnabled\":true,\"dfaEnabled\":true,\"editorialSystem\":\"em\",\"reportingPortfolio\":\"BMC/SO AJ\",\"inReviewEnabled\":true,\"inReviewRevisionsEnabled\":true}}],\"origin\":\"\",\"ownerIdentity\":\"3b8b348c-a903-4ad4-a0bb-07495cd6917a\",\"owner\":[],\"postedDate\":\"December 11th, 2025\",\"published\":true,\"recentEditorialEvents\":[],\"rejectedJournal\":[],\"revision\":\"\",\"amendment\":\"\",\"status\":\"under-review\",\"subjectAreas\":[],\"tags\":[],\"updatedAt\":\"2026-05-04T21:53:54+00:00\",\"versionOfRecord\":[],\"versionCreatedAt\":\"2025-12-11 16:01:36\",\"video\":\"\",\"vorDoi\":\"\",\"vorDoiUrl\":\"\",\"workflowStages\":[]},\"version\":\"v1\",\"identity\":\"rs-8064816\",\"journalConfig\":\"researchsquare\"},\"__N_SSP\":true},\"page\":\"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]\",\"query\":{\"redirect\":\"/article/rs-8064816\",\"identity\":\"rs-8064816\",\"version\":[\"v1\"]},\"buildId\":\"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7\",\"isFallback\":false,\"isExperimentalCompile\":false,\"dynamicIds\":[84888],\"gssp\":true,\"scriptLoader\":[]}","source_license":"CC-BY-4.0","license_restricted":false}