Relationships between executive function, working memory, and decision‐making on the Iowa Gambling Task: Evidence from ventromedial patients, dorsolateral patients, and normal subjects

Abstract

The results of previous studies are inconsistent in regard to the relationship between the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), working-memory (WM), and executive tasks, and whether these cognitive processes could be considered as mechanisms underlying a decision-making deficit. Moreover, the relationship between the IGT and executive measures is examined based on a limited number of executive tasks, within different populations showing diffuse damage. In addition, there are fewer studies carried out within control participants, with those studies also being inconclusive. It is also suggested that the association of the IGT performance with executive tasks depends on whether the IGT was running under ambiguity or under risk. In this work, all of these issues are studied. Results showed that both patients with ventromedial (VMPFC, N = 10) and dorsolateral (DLPFC, N = 10) prefrontal cortex lesions are significantly impaired on almost all executive tasks, WM tasks, and the IGT. Furthermore, when the IGT is run under risk, there are significant correlations between executive measures and the IGT for the DLPFC patients and the control participants (N = 34) but not the VMPFC patients. No correlation was found between WM tasks and the IGT for both frontal subgroups and control participants. These findings suggested that the mechanisms underlying the IGT deficit differ according to the lesion locations.

Elevated fatty acid amide hydrolase in the prefrontal cortex of borderline personality disorder: a [11C]CURB positron emission tomography study

“…The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) is a performance-based card game that indexes choice impulsivity [ 50 ]. It has been used extensively in BPD as a means to assess disadvantageous decision-making and PFC function [ 51 , 52 ]. Successful performance relies on intact orbitofrontal cortex function [ 53 ].…”

Decision making in Parkinson's disease: An analysis of the studies using the Iowa Gambling Task

“…In some studies, no correlation was found between the decision‐making performance and these functions (Zinchenko & Enikolopova, 2017). In other cases, authors (Ouerchefani et al, 2019) investigated the IGT dividing the performance into two parts (according to Brand, Recknor, et al, 2007). Regarding the second part, in vmPFC‐lesioned patients, the performance did not correlate with executive functions, whereas in patients with lesions in dlPFC, whose performance did not significantly differ from that of vmPFC patients, it was linked with shifting and planning abilities.…”

“…However, it is worth noting that these assumptions are to be meant with caution, because we cannot exclude that, at least in part, deficits can be due not only to the specific lesion site but also to possible disconnections between PFC regions (MacPherson et al, 2009). In addition, analysing healthy samples, most of the studies revealed that the IGT performance is linked to executive functions, especially in their components of inhibition, set shifting and planning abilities, mainly considering the second part of the task (Brand, Recknor, et al, 2007; Gansler et al, 2011; Ouerchefani et al, 2019; Suhr & Hammers, 2010). This demonstrates that, in absence of brain lesions, decision processes investigated through the IGT can be associated to executive functions.…”

Amygdala Circuitry During Neurofeedback Training and Symptoms’ Change in Adolescents With Varying Depression

“…The areas of increased connectivity with the right and left amygdalae in depressed and control youth respectively are known to support a plethora of higher-order associative and cognitive functions (Siddiqui et al, 2008 ), including cognitive control and executive function (Ouerchefani et al, 2019 ), i.e., the dorsolateral PFC (BA 46), self-referential processing (Meyer and Lieberman, 2018 ), i.e., the superior and medial PFC, BA 10, and emotion regulation (Rive et al, 2013 ; Eker et al, 2014 ; Falquez et al, 2014 ), i.e., the middle and inferior PFC, BA 9). Pre-central cortex involvement hints at the amygdala to motor coordination during emotional autobiographical recall.…”