What are the ways to study structure–function relationships? What research methods can be used and to what extent would they be useful for furthering our understanding of the role of maturation in human development?

Discuss the relative advantages and disadvantages of:

● experiments (intentionally manipulating brain structure variables and observing the eects on animal and human development)

● case studies (observing the development of animal and human children with brain damage)

● longitudinal correlational studies (observing the natural course of human development and establishing correlations between brain structure variables and cognitive functioning)

● brain scanning technology (observing brain scans as participants are performing cognitive tasks)

● interviews

● the experience sampling method. (See the section “Role of peers and play” for an explanation.)