Nature and Nurture of Cognitive and Social Development Across the Lifespan: Typical and Neurodevelopmental Pathways

Human development results from the complex interplay between genetic determinants (nature) and environmental factors (nurture). Rather than being independent forces, these dimensions dynamically interact to shape brain structure and function across the lifespan. In early development, sensitive periods of heightened neuroplasticity make individuals particularly responsive to caregiving, socioeconomic conditions, and sensory experiences, while in adulthood, accumulated experiences continue to modulate cognitive and emotional functioning. Although gene–environment interactions have been extensively studied in typical development, their role in explaining variability and resilience across neurodevelopmental conditions remains poorly understood. Understanding how biological predispositions and environmental inputs co act from infancy to adulthood is essential for identifying mechanisms that drive both adaptive and maladaptive trajectories in cognitive and socio cognitive development.

This Research Topic aims to examine how innate predispositions (nature) and environmental, experiential, and developmental influences (nurture) interact to shape cognitive and socio cognitive development from infancy into adulthood in both typical and neurodevelopmental populations. Despite increasing evidence supporting the dynamic relationship between genetic, neurobiological, and contextual factors, the relative weight of each and their changing influence over time remain open questions. Early environmental experiences, including caregiving, socioeconomic context, and sensory exposure, interact with biological predispositions to determine diverse developmental trajectories, while adulthood represents a period of continued plasticity in which environmental enrichment or deprivation can moderate previously established vulnerabilities. By integrating evidence across early and later developmental stages, this Research Topic seeks to provide an updated, domain specific perspective on the nature–nurture interplay in cognitive and social development, with implications for early identification, intervention, and mental health outcomes.

We invite contributions that explore the interplay between genetic, neurobiological, and environmental influences on cognitive and socio cognitive development from infancy through adulthood. Relevant themes include:

• Mechanisms of perceptual processing, attention, learning, social perception, action understanding, and early social cognitive competencies, and how these evolve across development;
• Comparisons between typical and neurodevelopmental pathways, including autism spectrum conditions, ADHD, and other neurodivergent profiles, to elucidate adaptive and atypical developmental trajectories;
• Studies using behavioral, neurophysiological, computational, and longitudinal approaches to characterize nature–nurture mechanisms across the lifespan;
• Gene–environment interactions in typical and atypical development;
• Cross sectional and longitudinal studies examining developmental trajectories across the lifespan;
• Neural plasticity and sensitive periods in neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric conditions;
• Environmental enrichment, adversity, stress, and resilience mechanisms;
• Translational implications for screening, diagnosis, prevention, and intervention strategies;
• Methodological and theoretical advances in modeling nature–nurture interactions.

We welcome the following article types: Original Research, Review, Mini Review, Systematic Review, Brief Research Report, Hypothesis & Theory, Perspective, Policy & Practice Reviews, and Case Report. Interdisciplinary contributions combining developmental psychology, cognitive neuroscience, genetics, and clinical sciences are particularly encouraged. Studies that integrate behavioral, neuroimaging, and computational approaches to understand the dynamic interplay between biological and environmental factors will be especially valued.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Gene–environment interaction, Developmental plasticity, Lifespan development, Neurodevelopmental disorders, Typical and neurodivergent development, Cognitive and socio cognitive mechanisms, Sensitive periods, Resilience

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.