The Executive Brain
This chapter considers different possible functional organizations of the prefrontal cortex: for instance, different functional roles for the lateral versus orbital surfaces; different functional roles for posterior versus anterior portions of the lateral surface; and hemispheric differences. The concept of executive functions is closely related to another distinction with a long history in cognitive science – namely, that between automatic and controlled behavior. The prefrontal cortex has extensive connections with virtually all sensory systems, the cortical and subcortical motor system, and structures involved in affect and memory. The anterior cingulate, on the medial surface, is involved in the detection of response conflict and helps to sustain task-focus (e.g., depending on level of reward or risk).
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The ability to use prior expertise and knowledge
Crystallised intelligence
The tendency for future rewards to have less subjective value than the same reward received now (or in the nearer future)
Delay discounting (or temporal discounting)
An event-related potential component in EEG that can be detected at the scalp when an error is made
Control processes that enable an individual to optimize performance in situations requiring the operation and coordination of several more basic cognitive processes
A test of verbal fluency in which participants must generate words beginning with a letter (e.g. " F" ) in a limited amount of time
Flexible thinking and problem solving in novel situations, independent of acquired knowledge
A test of response inhibition in which participants must respond to a frequent stimulus but withhold a response to another stimulus
A task in which participants must learn to avoid risky choices from four decks of cards (generating a net loss) in favor of less risky (and more rewarding) choices
A behavioral tendency to make immediate responses or seek immediate rewards
The process of relating information currently held in mind back to the task requirements
A set of brain regions in lateral prefrontal and parietal lobes activated by a large range of tasks relative to baseline
Carrying out several tasks in succession; requires both task switching and maintaining future goals while current goals are being dealt with
The use of neuroscientific methods and theories to account for economic decision making
Failure to shift away from a previous response
Learning that a previously rewarded stimulus or response is no longer rewarded
A task in which participants must point to a new object on each trial and thus maintain a working memory for previously selected items
Self-ordered pointing task
A personality disorder (now called Anti-Social Personality Disorder) associated with irresponsible and unreliable behavior that is not personally advantageous; an inability to form lasting commitments or relationships; egocentric thinking; and a marked degree of impulsivity
A proposal that emotional and bodily states associated with previous behaviors are used to influence decision making
Somatic Marker Hypothesis
Response interference from naming the ink color of a written color name (e.g. the word BLUE is printed in red ink and participants are asked to say the ink color, i.e. " red" )
A slowing of response time due to discarding a previous schema and setting up a new one
Maintaining focus on the task requirements over a period of time
Discarding a previous schema and establishing a new one
A two player game in which one player proposes a split of money and a responder either accepts the money (and obtains the agreed split) or rejects it (and both players get nothing)
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