Cerebral cortex and mental health

Question 1

From which cortices does the association cortex take information?

Answer 1

• Primary and secondary sensorimotor cortices
• Brain stem
• Thalamus

Question 2

To which cortices does the association cortex send information?

Answer 2

• Cerebellum
• Basal ganglia
• Hippocampus

Question 3

Is there information flowing between the different association cortex?

Answer 3

Yes

Question 4

What are the top-down effects on perception?

Answer 4

From higher level areas to modulate activity in primary sensory cortex
-> our expectations from context or prior experience can influence how we interpret ambiguous stimuli

Question 5

How does the association cortex modulate top-down effects on our perception?

Answer 5

Integrates sensory and motor information

• to produce meaningful perception of the world around us
• allowing for abstract representation and flexible behaviour

Question 6

What are the subdivisions of the association cortex?

Answer 6

1. Posterior (parietal) association area
2. Anterior (frontal) association area
3. Limbic (temporal) association area

Question 7

What is the posterior (parietal) association area responsible for?

Answer 7

• Attention

- Convergence of visual, auditory, somatosensory information

Question 8

What is the anterior (frontal) association area responsible for?

Answer 8

• Planning
• Decision making
• Working memory

Question 9

What is the limbic (temporal) association area responsible for?

Answer 9

• Long term memory
• Emotional responses
• > affect our behaviour

Question 10

What are the executive functions?

Answer 10

• Generating
• Planning
• Monitoring
• Task-switching
• Inhibition

Question 11

Who developed the Wisconsin card sort test?

What does it test?

Answer 11

Grand and Berg (1948)

• cognitive reasoning
• ability to adapt to changing rules

Question 12

What does the Tower of Hanoi test?

Answer 12

• Cognitive abilities
• you have to plan several moves in advance
• > ability to plan

Question 13

What does the Stroop test?

Answer 13

Inhibition

Question 14

What does the N-back task test?

Answer 14

Working memory

- you have to remember which objects have been shown, tap the same object when it comes up

Question 15

What are the 2 sources of evidence on executive functions and frontal lobe deficits?

Answer 15

• Neuroimaging (e.g. fMRI)

- Neuropsychological studies of acquired brain damage to frontal lobes (e.g. Phineas Gage)

Question 16

What are the findings of fMRI studies on frontal lobe activity?

Answer 16

• Activation in frontal regions is greatest for novel tasks

- Decreases across the blocks of an inhibition task as the volunteers become more practised at the test

Question 17

What characterises Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)?

Answer 17

> Impaired social and communicative development

> Rigid and repetitive behaviours and interests

> Poor performance on executive function tasks
- Tower of Hanoi, Wisconsin card sort test

> Dislike for change

> Preference for narrow routines and repetition

-> impairment in frontal functions necessary for adaptive responses to change and novelty