RESEARCH ARTICLE
Prefrontal Cortex Activation in Elementary Students during Biomimicry-based Convergent Thinking
Sang-Hee Park1, Seung-Hyuk Kwon2*
1Hanbat Elementary School
2Gongju National University of Education
Correspondence to Seung-Hyuk Kwon, masonkwon@gjue.ac.kr
Brain, Digital, & Learning. Volume 15, Number 4, 571–581, December 2025. https://doi.org/10.31216/BDL.2025.15.4.3
Received on December 13, 2025, Revised on December 24, 2025, Accepted on December 25, 2025, Published on December 31, 2025.
Copyright © 2025 Institute of Brain based Education, Korea National University of Education This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
This study explored prefrontal cortex (PFC) activation in elementary students during biomimicry-based convergent thinking using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Sixteen sixth-grade students completed a task consisting of Exploration, Design, and Implementation phases while their hemodynamic responses were recorded. Each phase showed distinct neural activation patterns. The Exploration phase elicited significant activation in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, reflecting intensive verbal working memory and information manipulation. During the Design phase, broader PFC activation was observed in the right dorsolateral and ventrolateral prefrontal cortices and the left frontal pole, indicating imagery-based creative synthesis, planning, and goal-directed multitasking. The Implementation phase mainly involved the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and left frontal pole, suggesting increased demands on cognitive flexibility, self-regulation, and error monitoring. Previous neurodevelopmental studies have reported that adolescents tend to demonstrate greater neural efficiency and more distributed network engagement during complex cognitive tasks. In contrast, the present findings suggest that elementary students rely more heavily on core PFC resources to manage cognitive load during biomimicry-based convergent thinking. These findings highlight the need for convergent education at this level to emphasize instructional scaffolding that reduces cognitive overload and supports the development of executive functions, particularly planning and monitoring.
Keywords
Convergent thinking, biomimicry, fNIRS, prefrontal cortex, elementary students, executive function