Disorders of Exec Funcs, Behaviour and Personality

Question 1

Who is considered the ‘Father of lobotomies’?

Answer 1

Walter Freeman II

Question 2

What did Walter Freeman II do?

Answer 2

Cored holes in frontal lobes.

Question 3

Who developed the lobotomy?

Answer 3

Antonio Egas Moriz

Question 4

Who was Antonio Egas Moriz?

Answer 4

The man who developed the lobotomy. Student of Walter Freeman II.

Question 5

What were 2 problems with frontal lobotomies?

Answer 5

There were no clinical trials and very little scientific research into the effects of them.

Question 6

What did Rylander state about frontal lobotomies?

Answer 6

Some improvements in lobotomized people, changes in personality and behaviour and reduction of cognitive abilities in some.

Question 7

What year did Rylander make statements about frontal lobotomies?

Answer 7

1948.

Question 8

Disorders of exec funcs, behaviour and personality are traditionally referred to as ___________.

Answer 8

Frontal Lobe Syndrome.

Question 9

Is there a single Frontal Lobe Syndrome?

Answer 9

No.

Question 10

The frontal lobes make up __________ of the cerebral cortex.

Answer 10

1/3.

Question 11

The frontal lobes are __________ with the rest of the brain.

Answer 11

Highly connected.

Question 12

What did Kolb and Whishaw say about the frontal lobes?

Answer 12

All neural roads eventually lead to the frontal lobes.

Question 13

In what year did Kolb and Whishaw make their statement about neural roads and the frontal lobes?

Answer 13

2009.

Question 14

What year did Wilder Penfield perform a frontal lobotomy and on who?

Answer 14

1935. His sister.

Question 15

What positives did Wilder Penfield find about his sister post frontal lobotomy in 1935?

Answer 15

She had excellent general health, capable of intelligent conversation and her sense of humour, memory and insight into other’s thoughts and feelings were unimpaired.

Question 16

What did Wilder Penfield’s sister plan to do 15 months post operation? How long did she have to do this?

Answer 16

Make dinner for Penfield and 4 other family members. All day.

Question 17

What happened when Penfield’s sister attempted to make dinner for Penfield and 4 other family members?

Answer 17

Majority of things were not ready, she was distressed and confused and it was evident she could not get everything done by herself.

Question 18

What did the failure to make dinner show about Penfield’s sister?

Answer 18

A lack of capacity for planned administration and a loss of power of initiative.

Question 19

In what year did Lezak have the patient ‘Bill’ case?

Answer 19

1983.

Question 20

Who was ‘Bill’ from Lezak’s 1983 case?

Answer 20

A 30 year old lawyer who was in the 10% of his law school class. He had an aneurysm in his frontal lobes and had surgical intervention to stop the bleeding.

Question 21

What was found about Bill post operation in the Lezak 1983 case?

Answer 21

He had deficits in prospective memory, in problem solving and emotional capacity but had intact verbal and academic skills and knowledge.

Question 22

What are the 4 types of impairment in executive functions?

Answer 22

1. Task setting and problem solving.
2. Inhibiting potent or habitual responses.
3. Task switching.
4. Multi-tasking.

Question 23

What are 2 tests designed to test the impairment of task setting and problem solving in exec funcs? Explain them.

Answer 23

1. The Verbal Fluency Test (FAS) - ‘Generate as many words as you can beginning with F/A/S in one minute.’
2. Cognitive Estimates - ‘How many camels in Holland?’

Question 24

What is one test designed to test the impairment of inhibiting potent or habitual responses in exec funcs? Explain.

Answer 24

The Stroop Test - coloured words sometimes corresponding and sometimes not corresponding with ink colour they’re written in. Say the ink colour and not the word.

Question 25

What is one test designed to test the impairment of task switching in exec funcs? Explain.

Answer 25

The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test - The participant is told to match the cards, but not how to match; however, he or she is told whether a particular match is right or wrong. Changes to rules continuous.

Question 26

What is one test designed to test the impairment of multitasking in exec funcs? Explain.

Answer 26

The Multiple Errands Test - evaluates the effect of executive function deficits on everyday functioning through a number of real-world tasks (e.g. purchasing specific items, collecting and writing down specific information, arriving at a stated location). Kind of like the Zoo test.

Question 27

What are some problems with standard exec func tests when evaluating multitasking deficits?

Answer 27

Standard exec func tests are too rigid and structured unlike real life and they are not sufficiently sensitive to some real-life deficits.

Question 28

Damage to the frontal lobes can result in what?

Answer 28

A release of the early reflex inhibitions such as the pout reflex and the grasp reflex.

Question 29

What is utilization behaviour?

Answer 29

A type of neurobehavioral disorder that involves patients grabbing objects in view and starting the 'appropriate' behavior associated with it at an 'inappropriate' time.

Question 30

Who created Case 'LE' and in what year?

Answer 30

Shallice et al in 1999.

Question 31

What tests were used ding the LE case by Shallice et al in 1999? Explain.

Answer 31

1. Lhermittes Procedure - present a patient with objects and sometimes show them what to do. 2. Novel 'Incidental' Procedure - a pen and paper presented to see what patient would do. 3. Novel 'Incidental' In-congruent Procedure - patient presented with a watergun and a candle to see if they would make connection.

Question 32

What were the results of Case LE by Shallice et al in 1999?

Answer 32

Utilization Behaviour observed in Novel 'Incidental' Procedure and for the In-congruent stimuli.

Question 33

What created Case 'CU' and in what year?

Answer 33

Boccardi et al in 2002.

Question 34

In Case CU, it was found utilization behaviour could be induced by _______ and also ________.

Answer 34

Induced by stimuli and also incidentally.

Question 35

Explain 2 events where CU displayed utilization behaviour.

Answer 35

1 - CU saw an apple and a knife on the table and started peeling it and ate it. When asked why he did that, he said "it was there". He was not particularly hungry. 2 - The experimenter put his wallet on the table while he was adjusting a camera. CU started emptying the wallet of cards and reading out personal documents and the experimenters National Insurance number. When asked "who's is that?", CU replied "it's yours" and continued.

Question 36

In what year did Phineas Gage get injured? What was the injury?

Answer 36

1848. Gage was a railroad construction foreman overseeing men blasting rocks to make way for a railroad. One explosion went off and a large iron rod was forcibly sent flying. It entered Gage's head under his left cheekbone, went through his head behind his left eye and exited his head via his frontal lobes.

Question 37

What was Gage like prior to the injury?

Answer 37

"The most efficient and capable foreman". He was a smart and efficient businessman and persistent in executing all plans.

Question 38

What was Gage like post-injury? How did this effect his work?

Answer 38

Gage could not be re-hired into his foreman position due to the changes. He was fitful, disrespectful, used 'the grossest profanity' and abandoned plans as soon as he made them. Friends and acquaintances said he was "no longer Gage".

Question 39

Phineas Gage displayed a change in _________ but his _____________ were okay.

Answer 39

Change in personality but his exec funcs were okay.

Question 40

Who was the 'Modern Phineas Gage' and in what year?

Answer 40

'EVR'. 1985.

Question 41

Who created the 'Modern Phineas Gage' case in 1985?

Answer 41

Eslinger.

Question 42

Who was EVR?

Answer 42

A successful 35 year old accountant who underwent a operation to remove a tumour from his frontal lobes.

Question 43

What positives were found about EVR post-operation?

Answer 43

'Above average' range on an intelligence and on a memory test. 'Flawless' on Wisconsin Card test, cognitive estimates and working memory tasks.

Question 44

What negative changes were found in EVR post-operation? How did this affect his life 3 months post-operation?

Answer 44

Changes in personality and severe impairment in real-life decision making. Entered business with a fired former-co-worker who had a questionable reputation. The business failed and EVR went bankrupt. Fired from all jobs post-bankruptcy due to 'tardiness and disorganisation'. His marriage broke down. Hoarded outdated and useless objects such as dead houseplants and broken fans. He could spend an entire day could be spent on a small task such as shaving or washing his hair.

Question 45

What is a lobotomy?

Answer 45

Lobotomy is a neurosurgical procedure. It consists of cutting or scraping away most of the connections to and from the frontal lobes and the rest of the brain.

Question 46

What is a lobectomy?

Answer 46

The surgical removal of a lobe of an organ such as the thyroid gland, lung, liver, or brain.

Question 47

What are executive functions and what do they do?

Answer 47

The executive functions are a set of processes that all have to do with managing oneself and one's resources in order to achieve a goal. They enable people to plan, organize, remember things, prioritize, pay attention and get started on tasks

Question 48

What does 'BADS' stand for?

Answer 48

Behavioural Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome.

Question 49

Who created the BADS and in what year?

Answer 49

Wilson et al in 1996.

Question 50

What is Dysexecutive Syndrome?

Answer 50

'Dysexecutive Syndrome' (DES) includes disorders of planning, organisation, problem solving and attention.

Question 51

What are some of the 6 tests used in the BADS?

Answer 51

Temporal judgement test, the Zoo test, a questionnaire and a key search test.

Question 52

People with _______ show behaviours similar to those with ___________ damage.

Answer 52

Autism. Frontal lobe damage.

Question 53

Who deduced that people with Autism show behaviours similar to those with frontal lobe damage and in what year?

Answer 53

Damasio et al in 1978.