Case study: HM

Question 1

Why did HM have brain surgery?

Answer 1

To alleviate the severe symptoms of epilepsy, which involved the removal of part of the brain within the temporal lobe called the hippocampus.

Question 2

What was HM suffering from?

Answer 2

HM was diagnosed as suffering with anterograde and retrograde amnesia. He had hippocampal brain damage (temporal lobe).

Question 3

What was HM unable to do?

Answer 3

Store new information in his STM. He also couldn’t remember events that occurred or information learnt before the injury. He couldn’t retrieve memories from 19 months to 11 years prior to the operation.

Question 4

What did HM have no knowledge of?

Answer 4

He showed no knowledge of current affairs and knew nothing of recent family events including moving house and his father’s death.

Question 5

What sort of methods did Milner use to gather in-depth data on HM?

Answer 5

> recall of salient personal events
> recall of public events
> formal tests
> experimental procedures
> Wisconsin Card Sorting Test and Perpetual Tasks
> Mooney Face Perception Task