Although other higher association areas also mature relatively late, the developmental course of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex has most prominently entered discourse affecting the social, legislative, judicial, parenting, and educational realms because of its involvement in judgment, decision making, and impulse control. It is also consistent with a growing body of literature indicating a changing balance between earlier-maturing limbic system networks (which are the seat of emotion, and later-maturing frontal lobe networks) and later-maturing frontal systems (Casey et al., 2010a [this issue of Neuron]). The frontal/limbic relationship is highly dynamic. Appreciating the interplay between limbic and cognitive systems is imperative for understanding decision making during adolescence.
