Executive function and fluid intelligence after frontal lobe lesions

Roca, María; Parr, Alice; Thompson, Richard M.; Woolgar, Alexandra; Torralva, Teresa; Antoun, Nagui M.; Manes, Facundo; Duncan, John S.

doi:10.1093/brain/awp269

Cited by 272 publications

(269 citation statements)

References 73 publications

(107 reference statements)

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“…Considerable controversy exists about precisely what is measured by tests of executive function. It has been suggested that tests used to assess executive functioning may not reflect a unique aspect of functioning but may be better explained in terms of other cognitive processes involved in test performance, such as verbal abilities, processing speed, or even intelligence (Greenaway et al, 2009;Roca et al, 2010). Hence, our executive domain may not be measuring a uniform set of processes, which may explain why only a small network was commonly expressed.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discrete Neuroanatomical Networks Are Associated with Specific Cognitive Abilities in Old Age

Wang

Zhu²,

He³

et al. 2011

J. Neurosci.

194

158

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There have been many attempts at explaining age-related cognitive decline on the basis of regional brain changes, with the usual but inconsistent findings being that smaller gray matter volumes in certain brain regions predict worse cognitive performance in specific domains. Additionally, compromised white matter integrity, as suggested by white matter hyperintensities or decreased regional white matter fractional anisotropy, has an adverse impact on cognitive functions. The human brain is, however, a network and it may be more appropriate to relate cognitive functions to properties of the network rather than specific brain regions. We report on graph theory-based analyses of diffusion tensor imaging tract-derived connectivity in a sample of 342 healthy individuals aged 72-92 years. The cognitive domains included processing speed, memory, language, visuospatial, and executive functions. We examined the association of these cognitive assessments with both the connectivity of the whole brain network and individual cortical regions. We found that the efficiency of the whole brain network of cortical fiber connections had an influence on processing speed and visuospatial and executive functions. Correlations between connectivity of specific regions and cognitive assessments were also observed, e.g., stronger connectivity in regions such as superior frontal gyrus and posterior cingulate cortex were associated with better executive function. Similar to the relationship between regional connectivity efficiency and age, greater processing speed was significantly correlated with better connectivity of nearly all the cortical regions. For the first time, regional anatomical connectivity maps related to processing speed and visuospatial and executive functions in the elderly are identified.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discrete Neuroanatomical Networks Are Associated with Specific Cognitive Abilities in Old Age

Wang

Zhu²,

He³

et al. 2011

J. Neurosci.

194

158

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Delis et al, 2001). The Hotel Task (Manly et al, 2002) was included to increase ecological validity of test measures, as it mimics real-life multitasking situations, demonstrating acceptable ecological validity, and sensitivity in detecting ED in various disorders (Roca et al, 2008(Roca et al, , 2010Torralva et al, 2012). Similarly, the UCSD Performance-Based Skills Assessment (UPSA) (Patterson et al, 2001), originally developed for studies of schizophrenia (Patterson, Goldman, McKibbin, Hughs & Jeste, 2001;Mausbach, Harvey, Goldman, Jeste & Patterson, 2007), was included because it targets "reallife" multitasking situations, as subjects role-play with the examiner in three functional domains (communication, finance, and transportation).…”

Section: Active Control Conditionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rehabilitation of Executive Functions in Patients with Chronic Acquired Brain Injury with Goal Management Training, External Cuing, and Emotional Regulation: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Tornås

Løvstad

Solbakk

et al. 2016

J Int Neuropsychol Soc

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Methods: Seventy patients with a verified ABI and executive dysfunction were randomly allocated to GMT (n = 33) or a psycho-educative active control condition, Brain Health Workshop (BHW) (n = 37). In addition, all participants received external cueing by text messages. Neuropsychological tests and self-reported questionnaires of executive functioning were administered pre-intervention, immediately after intervention, and at 6 months followup. Assessors were blinded to group allocation.Results: Questionnaire measures indicated significant improvement of everyday executive functioning in the GMT group, with effects lasting at least 6 months post-treatment. Both groups improved on the majority of the applied neuropsychological tests. However, improved performance on tests demanding executive attention was most prominent in the GMT group. Conclusions:The results indicate that GMT combined with external cueing is an effective metacognitive strategy training method, ameliorating executive dysfunction in daily life for patients with chronic ABI. The strongest effects were seen on self-report measures of executive functions 6 months post-treatment, suggesting that strategies learned in GMT were applied and consolidated in everyday life after the end of training. Furthermore, these findingsshow that executive dysfunction can be improved years after the ABI. INTRODUCTIONExecutive functions (EF) are required for independent, purposive, self-directed behavior and include processes of initiation, planning, purposive action, volition, inhibition, flexibility, as well as self-monitoring and self-regulation (Lezak, 1995;Stuss, 2011). A division between "cold" and "hot" components of EF has been suggested, with "cold" EF corresponding closely to cognitive and logical processes, and the "hot" aspects of EF involving regulation of emotion and motivation (Chan, Shum, Toulopoulou & Chen, 2008).Thus, EF is an umbrella term for a set of interrelated capacities resulting from activity in anatomically and functionally independent, but interconnected networks subserved by widespread brain regions, the prefrontal cortex playing a central role (Stuss & Alexander, 2007).Executive dysfunction (ED) is common following acquired brain injury (ABI) (Stuss & Levine, 2002;Novakovic-Agopian et al, 2011), and may disrupt the ability to effectively use intact functions or compensatory strategies, undermine efficient self-management (Lewis, Babbage & Leathem, 2011), hamper the rehabilitation process (Robertson & Murre, 1999), and is also associated with long-term negative psychosocial and vocational outcome (Draper & Ponsford, 2008; Ylvisaker & Feeney, 2000). Thus, techniques for reducing ED might significantly impact functional outcome (Manly & Murphy, 2012).Most theories describe EF as top-down controlled processes involved in the control and direction of self-regulatory cognition, emotion and behavior (Cicerone et al., 2006;Stuss, 2011). Current theories of cognitive EF bear close resemblance to dominant models of attention (Norman & Shalli...

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“…The exact nature of these processes is unknown but a failure to adopt a strategy on the HSCT in individuals with schizophrenia is similar to that observed in right lateral frontal patients, further implicating this region in schizophrenia pathology. However, although the right lateral frontal region is implicated in strategy use (Miller & Tippett, 1996;Robinson et al, 2015;Roca et al, 2010) and inhibition (Aron, Fletcher, Bullmore, Sahakian, & Robbins, 2003;Aron et al, 2014) The current study, to the authors' knowledge, is the first to address the nature of completions and errors on the initiation section of the HSCT. The patients with schizophrenia produced a greater number of uncommon, bizarre, or incorrect responses, although the composite measures were no longer significant after controlling for the baseline cognitive measures.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Verbal Initiation, Suppression, and Strategy Use and the Relationship with Clinical Symptoms in Schizophrenia

Martin

Gibson

Mowry

et al. 2016

J Int Neuropsychol Soc

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Objectives: Individuals with schizophrenia have difficulties on measures of executive functioning such as initiation and suppression of responses and strategy development and implementation. The current study thoroughly examines performance on the Hayling Sentence Completion Test (HSCT) in individuals with schizophrenia, introducing novel analyses based on initiation errors and strategy use, and association with lifetime clinical symptoms. Methods: The HSCT was administered to individuals with schizophrenia (N = 77) and age-and sex-matched healthy controls (N = 45), along with background cognitive tests. The standard HSCT clinical measures (initiation response time, suppression response time, suppression errors), composite initiation and suppression error scores, and strategy-based responses were calculated. Lifetime clinical symptoms [formal thought disorder (FTD), positive, negative] were calculated using the Lifetime Dimensions of Psychosis Scale. Results: After controlling for baseline cognitive differences, individuals with schizophrenia were significantly impaired on the suppression response time and suppression error scales. For the novel analyses, individuals with schizophrenia produced a greater number of initiation errors and subtly wrong errors, and produced fewer responses indicative of developing an appropriate strategy. Strategy use was negatively correlated with FTD symptoms in individuals with schizophrenia. Conclusions: The current study provides further evidence for deficits in the initiation and suppression of verbal responses in individuals with schizophrenia. Moreover, an inability to attain a strategy at least partly contributes to increased semantically connected errors when attempting to suppress responses. The association between strategy use and FTD points to the involvement of executive deficits in disorganized speech in schizophrenia. (JINS, 2016, 22, 735-743)

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Executive function and fluid intelligence after frontal lobe lesions

Cited by 272 publications

References 73 publications

Discrete Neuroanatomical Networks Are Associated with Specific Cognitive Abilities in Old Age

Discrete Neuroanatomical Networks Are Associated with Specific Cognitive Abilities in Old Age

Rehabilitation of Executive Functions in Patients with Chronic Acquired Brain Injury with Goal Management Training, External Cuing, and Emotional Regulation: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Verbal Initiation, Suppression, and Strategy Use and the Relationship with Clinical Symptoms in Schizophrenia

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