Does Planning Ability (PA) improve with age, is PA advanced in adolescents who are less impulsive and what is the effect of both age and impulsivity on PA? This study aimed to find answers on above...Show moreDoes Planning Ability (PA) improve with age, is PA advanced in adolescents who are less impulsive and what is the effect of both age and impulsivity on PA? This study aimed to find answers on above mentioned questions. The study has an experimental cross-sectional design and is part of a larger research project about identifying computational components that underlie planning skills. Participants were 157 adolescent citizens from the United States (range = 8.02 – 25.90, M = 15.83, SD = 5.08), of which 78 women, 77 men and 2 missing genders. Data of participants playing Four-in-a-row, an alternative form of tic-tac-toe, has been analysed to measure PA. Impulsivity is measured with unidimensional Barratt Impulsiveness Scale–Brief (BIS-Brief), the shortened version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11). Age (Wilks’ Lambda: F (2,146) = .321; p = .726) and Impulsivity (Wilks’ Lambda: F (2,146) = .701; p = .498) both showed non-significant effects on the outcome measures Mean Difficulty Level (MDL) and Mean Reaction Time (MRT) (indicators of PA). The interaction effect was not significant either (Wilks’ Lambda: F (2,146) = .475; p = .623). Age was significantly and positively correlated with MDL, MRT and negatively correlated with impulsivity. MDL and MRT were significantly moderately correlated and impulsivity was negatively correlated with MRT but not significantly with MDL. All in all, with age, impulsivity does not affect PA differently. However, the correlations suggest that with age people improved in MDL, made slower decisions and became less impulsive. Probably, MDL and MRT were not suitable outcome measures for PA, but measuring PA by means of the computational models and when Four-in-a-Row meets the COTAN standards, it is possible to reach a more ecologically valid measurement tool that can measure accurate PA.Show less
