ERIC Number: EJ730491
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jun
Pages: 20
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0278-2626
EISSN: N/A
Developmental Outcomes after Early Prefrontal Cortex Damage
Eslinger, Paul J.; Flaherty-Craig, Claire V.; Benton, Arthur L.
Brain and Cognition, v55 n1 p84-103 Jun 2004
The neuropsychological bases of cognitive, social, and moral development are minimally understood, with a seemingly wide chasm between developmental theories and brain maturation models. As one approach to bridging ideas in these areas, we review 10 cases of early prefrontal cortex damage from the clinical literature, highlighting overall clinical profiles and real life developmental outcomes. Based on these cases, there is preliminary evidence to support distinctive developmental differences after: (1) dorsolateral, (2) mesial, and (3) orbital-polar prefrontal lesions, for more profound impairments after bilateral damage, and possibly for recovery differences after very early vs. later childhood lesion onset. Further case and group studies are needed to confirm reliable effects of specific lesion locations, the influence of age of lesion onset, and related experiential and treatment variables in determining adult outcomes. Rather than a single underlying deficit associated with early prefrontal cortex damage, we interpret the findings to suggest that it is the altered integration and interplay of cognitive, emotional, self-regulatory, and executive/metacognitive deficits that contribute to diverse developmental frontal lobe syndromes. The findings support the fundamental importance of prefrontal cortex maturation in protracted cognitive, social-emotional, and moral development.
Descriptors: Brain, Neurological Impairments, Cognitive Development, Moral Development, Social Development, Young Children, Emotional Development, Neuropsychology
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Publication Type: Information Analyses; Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A