Exam 4 Study Guide Notes

Chapter 12: Psychopathology

Criteria for Mental Disorders

Mental disorders are defined as persistent disturbances in behavior, thoughts, or emotions that cause significant distress or impairment in daily functioning. Diagnosis is based primarily on behavioral symptoms rather than physiological measurements.

The DSM-5-TR is the current standardized system for diagnosing and classifying major psychiatric illnesses. It lists the criteria necessary for diagnosing mental disorders. Approximately 50% of Americans are expected to experience at least one mental disorder in their lifetime.

Medical Model of Disease

The medical model views abnormal psychological experiences as illnesses with biological and environmental causes, identifiable signs and symptoms, and possible treatments. Diagnosis establishes the type of illness, where signs are objective indicators of a disorder, and symptoms are subjective reports of behaviors, thoughts, and emotions.

Classification of Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Symptoms of schizophrenia are categorized into positive and negative symptoms:

Positive Symptoms

Symptoms that are present but should not be, including psychosis such as hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thought and speech, and bizarre behaviors.

Negative Symptoms

Characteristics of the individual that are absent but should be present, including emotional dysregulation (lack of emotional expression, reduced facial expression/flat affect, inability to experience pleasure/anhedonia) and impaired motivation (reduced conversation/alogia, diminished ability to begin or sustain activities, social withdrawal).

Heritability of Disorders

Heredity plays a role in schizophrenia. Both genes and the environment strongly influence the chances of developing schizophrenia. Genetic studies like adoption studies or twin studies are utilized, though the specific methodologies aren't detailed in the provided text.

Brain Changes Associated with Schizophrenia

The brains of people with schizophrenia can differ structurally from the brains of controls. Functional changes are detected by techniques like PET or fMRI. Brain differences include abnormalities in the cerebral cortex and structural differences.

Treatments for Schizophrenia

In the 1930s, there were no effective treatments for schizophrenia. Surgical interventions like lobotomy were tried, but these were based on little scientific evidence. Currently, the primary treatment involves antipsychotic drugs, also called neuroleptics, which alleviate symptoms of schizophrenia.

First Generation vs. Second Generation Antipsychotics

First-Generation Antipsychotics

Also known as typical antipsychotics or neuroleptics, these alleviate schizophrenia symptoms by blocking dopamine receptors, specifically showing antagonist activity at dopamine D2 receptors.

Second-Generation Antipsychotics

Also called atypical antipsychotics or atypical neuroleptics, these have actions other than or in addition to dopamine D2 receptor antagonism. Some may also block serotonin (5-HT) receptors.

Receptors Acted On

Antipsychotic medications primarily act by blocking dopamine D2 receptors. Some second-generation antipsychotics also block serotonin (5-HT) receptors, such as the 5-HT2A receptor.

Dopamine Hypothesis

The dopamine hypothesis suggests schizophrenia results from either excessive levels of synaptic dopamine or excessive postsynaptic sensitivity to dopamine. Antipsychotics, which block dopamine receptors, are key evidence related to this hypothesis.

Glutamate Hypothesis

The glutamate hypothesis suggests the involvement of glutamate, the main excitatory amino acid transmitter in the brain, in schizophrenia.

Symptoms of Major Depressive Disorder

Depression is characterized by chronic mood problems and symptoms that differ from simple sadness.

Brain Changes Associated with Depression

Brain changes associated with depression are often detected as functional changes using PET or fMRI. Depressed individuals show changes in activity in several brain regions. Increased activation is evident in the amygdala during emotional processing and in the frontal lobes during cognitively demanding tasks. Decreased activity is evident in the parietal and posterior temporal cortex and in the anterior cingulate cortex, regions implicated in attention. The increased activity in the amygdala can persist even after the depression has lifted.

Common Treatment Options for Depression

Common treatment options include antidepressants, such as Monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, Tricyclics/heterocyclics, and Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT) is a last-resort treatment for unmanageable depression. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a noninvasive treatment involving magnetic energy pulses to stimulate the cortex. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and Ketamine are also listed as potential treatments.

Monoamine Hypothesis of Depression

Antidepressant drugs strongly implicate monoamines. Monoamine oxidase (MAO) is an enzyme that breaks down monoamine neurotransmitters. MAO inhibitors treat depression by inhibiting this enzyme, thus preventing the breakdown of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine. Other antidepressants, like tricyclics and SSRIs, act by inhibiting the reuptake of monoamines, increasing their levels at the synapse.

First Generation Antidepressants vs. Newer Drugs

First-Generation Antidepressants

Monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors inhibit the enzyme that breaks down serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine. Tricyclics and heterocyclics inhibit the reuptake of norepinephrine, serotonin, and/or dopamine.

Newer Drugs

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) specifically block the reuptake of serotonin. Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) inhibit the reuptake of both serotonin and norepinephrine. Ketamine is also listed as an option for depression treatment.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT is a treatment that is helpful for managing symptoms of mental disorders. It is listed as a psychological treatment option for bipolar disorder and for obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder is a mood disorder characterized by extreme mood swings. It also involves subtle changes in the brain and has a complex genetic component.

Neurobiological Observations

Enlarged ventricles and reduced volume in the amygdala, hippocampus, and frontal cortex.

Treatments

Commonly treated with lithium. Psychological treatment options include CBT. Lithium is not an appropriate treatment for depression.

Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders are among the most common psychiatric conditions. They include recurrent panic states and generalized persistent anxiety disorder. They are characterized by an intensity of apprehension and fear that is overwhelming and includes irrational fears.

Symptoms

Symptoms can include a sense of terror, bodily sensations such as dizziness, difficulty breathing, trembling, and shaking, and a feeling of loss of control. Anxiety can be lethal, with men with panic disorder being more likely to die from cardiovascular disease or suicide.

Phobic Disorder

Phobic disorders involve persistent excessive fear, which can be irrational. Categories include fears of animals, environments, and situations (e.g., social phobia).

Panic Disorder

Panic disorder is defined by recurrent panic attacks and a fear of subsequent attacks. It can lead to agoraphobia. Symptoms may include shortness of breath, heart palpitations, sweating, and other physical sensations.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by chronic excessive worry. Symptoms include restlessness, fatigue, irritability, and sleep problems.

Drugs Used for Anxiety Disorders

Drugs used for anxiety disorders are called anxiolytics. The most common class of anxiolytics is benzodiazepines, with examples including Diazepam (Valium), alprazolam (Xanax), and lorazepam (Ativan). Other medications used include SSRIs and SNRIs.

Mechanism of Action

Benzodiazepines bind to GABA receptors, specifically they are noncompetitive agonists of GABA_A receptors. By binding to GABA receptors, they enhance the inhibitory effects of the transmitter GABA. This action increases hyperpolarization in postsynaptic cells, which in turn reduces neuronal excitability. Drugs affecting serotonergic synapses (like SSRIs) may also reduce anxiety.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

PTSD involves re-experiencing traumatic events, leading to intrusive memories and heightened anxiety. It is characterized by chronic physiological arousal, recurrent intrusive thoughts or images of a traumatic event, and avoidance of triggers related to the trauma. There is a hypothesis that the disorder is a special case of fear conditioning.

Brain Regions and Changes

Brain regions and changes associated with PTSD include temporal lobe atrophy, which may be caused by chronic exposure to stress hormones. Environmental factors and genetic predisposition also interact to influence the development of the disorder.

Treatments

CBT can be helpful for managing symptoms.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

OCD is characterized by intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions) aimed at alleviating anxiety. Dysfunction of serotonin systems significantly contributes to OCD symptoms.

Obsessions vs. Compulsions

Obsessions are defined as persistent intrusive thoughts. Compulsions are defined as repetitive actions or behaviors performed to alleviate the anxiety caused by the obsessions.

Treatments

OCD is commonly treated with SSRIs and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Surgical procedures and brain stimulation have also been explored as treatments, although these are noted as controversial trials.

Chapter 13: Learning and Memory

Distinction Between Learning and Memory

Learning is defined as the process of acquiring information. It involves acquiring new and relatively enduring information, behavior patterns, or abilities, characterized by modifications of behavior as a result of practice, study, or experience. Experiences change our brains, with structural changes occurring in synapses and circuitry when we learn.

Memory is defined as the ability to store and retrieve information. More specifically, it is the ability to learn and neurally encode information, consolidate it for longer-term storage, and retrieve or reactivate the consolidated information at a later time. Learning and memory are interconnected.

Patient H.M.

Patient H.M. was Henry Gustav Molaison (1926-2008). He suffered from severe epilepsy which developed after a bicycle accident when he was young. He underwent brain surgery in 1953 to try and stop them. The surgery performed was a bilateral medial temporal lobectomy. This involved the removal of the medial portions of both temporal lobes. The removed regions included most of the hippocampus, amygdala, and adjacent cortex on both sides. The adjacent cortex included regions like the entorhinal, perirhinal, and parahippocampal cortices.

Results of H.M.'s Surgery

The surgery was successful in reducing H.M.'s seizures. General convulsions were eliminated, and the frequency of partial seizures decreased. He was also able to decrease his anti-convulsant medication. There was no change to his perceptual or motor abilities. He even showed a slight increase in intelligence, with his IQ score going up by a few points. However, the surgery resulted in severe memory impairment, characterized by amnesia. This included both retrograde and anterograde amnesia.

Anterograde vs. Retrograde Amnesia

Amnesia is a severe impairment of memory.

Retrograde Amnesia

Loss of memories formed before a brain injury. It is a difficulty in retrieving memories formed before the onset of amnesia. Complete retrograde amnesia is very rare.

Anterograde Amnesia

Loss of memory for things occurring after a brain injury. It is a difficulty in forming new memories beginning with the onset of a disorder. It is also described as the inability to make new memories.

For Patient H.M., the memory deficit was both retrograde and anterograde amnesia. He had mild retrograde amnesia, with limited memory of events in the two years preceding the surgery. His severe deficit was anterograde amnesia, meaning he was unable to form new memories after the surgery.

Tasks H.M. Could Still Do

Despite his severe anterograde amnesia, Patient H.M. had several abilities that remained intact:

• Short-term memory: His short-term memory was intact.

• Motor and perceptual abilities: These were unchanged by the surgery.

• Skill learning (Non-declarative memory): This was preserved. He could learn new skills by doing them over and over.

• Priming: He could also demonstrate priming, a change in processing a stimulus due to prior exposure, even with words he had forgotten having seen previously.

Tasks H.M. Could Not Do

What H.M. was not able to do was form new long-term memories. He had a severe impairment in memory. This was a profound deficit in long-term declarative memory. He could not retain any new material for more than a brief period.

Declarative vs. Non-declarative Memory

Research revealed that there are fundamentally different types of memory. H.M.'s case provided clear evidence for these different types.

Declarative Memory

What we usually think of as memory. It refers to facts and information acquired through learning. It is memory we are aware of accessing, which we can declare to others. It's the type of memory used to answer "what" questions. This is the type of memory profoundly impaired by H.M.'s surgery.

Non-declarative Memory

Also called procedural memory. It is memory about perceptual or motor procedures, shown by performance rather than conscious recollection. It is the type of memory used for "how" problems and is often nonverbal. Non-declarative memory is demonstrated through performance.

Types of Memory

Declarative Memory (Explicit)

Things you know and can tell others.

• Episodic memory: Also called autobiographical memory. Memory of a particular incident or a specific time and place.

• Semantic memory: Generalized declarative memory. It is knowing the meaning of a word without knowing where or when you learned it.

Non-declarative Memory (Implicit)

Things you know that you can show by doing. It includes skills and tasks that cannot be easily verbalized.

• Skill learning (procedural): Learning how to perform a challenging task by doing it repeatedly.

• Priming: A change in how you process a stimulus because you have seen it before or perceived something similar. Also called repetition priming.

• Classical conditioning: Learning through associations. In its simplest form, it requires the cerebellum, not the hippocampus. Also called Pavlovian conditioning.

• Instrumental conditioning: Learn that a certain action yields a certain consequence. Also called operant conditioning.

• Nonassociative learning: Includes habituation. In the slug Aplysia, habituation is due to a weakening of the synapse between the sensory neuron and the motor neuron.

• Spatial memory: Listed under non-declarative memory in one source.

Animal Models of Memory

The extensive damage to the hippocampus, amygdala, and rhinal cortex caused by bilateral medial temporal lobectomy in humans necessitated the creation of animal models to study brain-damage-induced amnesia. Animal models like monkeys and rats have been used to study memory.

A common test for object recognition memory in monkeys is the Delayed Nonmatching-to-Sample test. Results showed that loss of the hippocampus, amygdala, and associated cortex in monkeys leads to impairments in object recognition.

In rats, the Mumby Box is used for object recognition memory tests. Results showed that only loss of the rhinal cortex in rats showed deficits in object recognition.

Spatial Recognition Memory

Spatial recognition memory is a type of memory. It requires an intact hippocampus. Bilateral lesions of the hippocampus disrupt performance in spatial recognition tasks. Tasks used to study spatial memory include the Radial Arm Maze and the Morris water maze. Interference with LTP, for example via NMDA receptor blockade, interferes with performance in the Morris water maze. Many neurons in the hippocampus are place cells, which respond when a subject is in a specific location in the test environment. Birds that store food have large hippocampi, suggesting a role for the hippocampus in spatial learning.

Components of Memory

Memory involves different stages of information retention. The memory system consists of at least three stages or buffers:

• Sensory buffers: The briefest memories, fleeting glimpses of a scene that vanish quickly. For visual stimuli, they are sometimes called iconic memories. They are thought to be residual activity in sensory neurons.

• Short-term memory (STM): Information actively attended to for a short period of time, lasting seconds to a few minutes. Without rehearsal, it is easily disrupted. H.M.'s case provided clear evidence that short-term memory differs from long-term memory.

• Working memory: Refers to the ability to actively manipulate information while it is in STM. It is considered a subset of STM where information can be analyzed and manipulated by an "executive" part of the mind.

• Long-term memory (LTM): Long-lasting memories that persist even when you no longer attend to the information. These memories can last for minutes up to a lifetime and have a vast capacity.

Memory Process

The memory system involves several processes to capture, store, and retrieve information:

1. Encoding: The process of getting raw sensory information into STM. A subset of sensory information from sensory buffers is encoded and placed into STM.

2. Consolidation: The process of moving or transferring information from volatile STM to more durable LTM. For declarative memories, this process requires an intact hippocampus. H.M.'s case demonstrated a role for the medial temporal lobe in memory consolidation.

3. Retrieval: Calling stored information back into working memory (STM) for use. When probing memory, information is retrieved from LTM and placed into STM to perform a task.

4. Reconsolidation: A process that updates already stored long-term memories. Retrieving a memory makes it vulnerable to distortion because memories can change upon retrieval.

Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity, also called neural plasticity, is the ability of the nervous system to change in response to experience or the environment. These are changes in the structure and function of synapses that underlie learning and memory.

Demonstrations of Neuroplasticity

• Changes in circuitry: Actively used pathways are strengthened. Circuitry changes in response to experiences (learning).

• Changes at the synaptic level: Long-term memories require changes in the nervous system that can be observed. Learning could alter synaptic structure or function. New synapses can form (or old ones die back) as a result of use. Shifts in synaptic input can occur. Changes can also occur in the postsynaptic receptive area or axon terminal. These include mechanisms for enhancing or diminishing synaptic responses. At the cellular level, the idea that "Cells that fire together, wire together" reflects synaptic plasticity.

• Effects of enriched environments: Exposure to an enriched environment can affect brain structure and future behavior. For example, rats in enriched conditions show evidence of neuroplasticity: thicker cortex, more dendritic branches, larger cortical synapses, more neurons in the hippocampus, and enhanced recovery from brain damage.

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

Long-term potentiation (LTP) is a stable, long-lasting enhancement in synaptic transmission. It is a long-lasting change in synaptic strength. LTP occurs in the hippocampus. It can be crucial for memory consolidation. Pharmacological treatments that interfere with LTP tend to impair learning.

Mice lacking functional NMDA receptors in the hippocampus are incapable of LTP and show impaired declarative memory. Conversely, mice engineered to overexpress NMDA receptors in the hippocampus have enhanced LTP and better long-term memory.

The cause of H.M.'s amnesia is thought to be the loss of medial temporal lobe structures like the hippocampus, which normally use LTP to consolidate short-term memories into long-term memories.

Storage of Memories

Memories are not diffusely and equivalently distributed throughout the brain. They are stored diffusely through the brain. This distribution means they can survive destruction of single structures. They become more resistant to disruption over time.

Specific brain regions are implicated in storing different types of memory:

• Cerebral Cortex: Stores long-term memories, including general knowledge and experiences. After consolidation, the hippocampus transfers the memory back to the cortex for permanent storage.

• Inferotemporal Cortex: Involved in memory storage for visual patterns.

• Prefrontal Cortex: Involved in memory storage for tasks with sequential responses.

• Cerebellum: Crucial for classical conditioning and involved in motor skills/procedural memory.

• Striatum: Involved in storing stimuli-response relationships and skill learning.

• Hippocampus and cortex: Involved in spatial memory storage.

• Medial temporal lobe, neocortex: Involved in declarative memories (episodic and semantic).

• Amygdala: Involved in storing the emotional significance of experiences.

• Medial diencephalon (dorsomedial thalamus and mammillary bodies): Part of a larger memory system involved in forming new declarative memories, damage to which can cause amnesia similar to H.M.'s.

Chapter 14: Attention

Selective Attention

Selective attention is the process by which we select or focus on one or more specific stimuli—either external phenomena or internal thoughts—for enhanced processing and analysis. It allows for better information processing in challenging environments.

Selective attention is distinguished from vigilance, which is the global level of alertness of an individual.

Overt vs. Covert Attention

• Overt attention is attention in which the focus coincides with sensory orientation.

• Covert attention is attention in which the focus can be directed independently of sensory orientation.

Cocktail Party Effect

The cocktail party effect is the selective enhancement of attention used to filter out distracters, as you might do while listening to one person talking in the midst of a noisy party. It demonstrates the ability to focus on one conversation amidst noise and the filtering nature of attention.

Attentional Bottleneck

The attentional bottleneck is a filter created by the limits intrinsic to our attentional processes, resulting in only the most important stimuli being selected for special processing. Attention acts as a filter to direct cognitive resources toward the most important stimuli around us, thereby protecting the brain from being overwhelmed by the world.

Timing of Bottleneck

There has been debate about whether the attentional bottleneck occurs early in processing (early-selection models) or later (late-selection models). A possible resolution involves the concept of perceptual load.

• Dichotic listening refers to presenting different auditory stimuli to each ear simultaneously, often used in shadowing experiments.

Early Selection Models vs. Late Selection Models

• Early selection models suggest that unattended information is filtered out right away, at the level of the initial sensory input. Filtering is based on physical characteristics, and the meaning of unattended information is not processed.

• Late selection models propose that important but unattended stimuli may undergo substantial unconscious processing, even up to the level of semantic meaning and awareness, before capturing attention. All incoming information is initially processed for meaning before filtering.

Shadowing

Shadowing is a task in which the participant is asked to focus attention on one ear or the other while different stimuli are being presented to the two ears, and to repeat aloud the material presented to the attended ear. It is a technique used to test selective attention.

Inattentional Blindness vs. Change Blindness

• Inattentional blindness is the failure to perceive nonattended stimuli that seem so obvious as to be impossible to miss. It highlights that we do not perceive information we aren't actively attending to.

• Change blindness is the failure to notice a change in a visual scene. It differs from inattentional blindness in that it involves missing differences between two states rather than missing something visible.

Divided Attention

Divided attention refers to a task or situation in which the participant is asked to focus attention on two or more stimuli simultaneously. However, attention is a limited resource, and people often switch back and forth between stimuli rather than truly multitasking.

Attention as a Spotlight

Attention has been likened to a spotlight, helping us to distinguish stimuli from distracters. This metaphor describes the steerable focus of our selective attention used to select stimuli for enhanced processing. Having an attentional spotlight helps focus cognitive resources and behavioral responses toward the most important things in the environment. Balint's syndrome can be likened to an extreme narrowing of this spotlight.

Perceptual Load

Perceptual load is defined as the immediate processing demands presented by a stimulus.

The difficulty of the task influences how attentional resources are allocated. When focusing on a very complex stimulus (high perceptual load), the demand on perceptual processing resources is so great that there is nothing left over for processing competing unattended items; these are excluded right away (early selection). When focusing on easier stimuli, enough perceptual resources may be left over to simultaneously process additional stimuli up to the level of semantic meaning and awareness (late selection). Attention is continually rebalanced between early and late selection depending on task difficulty.

Voluntary Attention vs. Reflexive Attention

• Voluntary attention, also called endogenous attention, is the kind of attention we direct through willpower. It is a conscious, top-down process aligned with goals. It is studied using symbolic cuing tasks. Voluntary attention is slower but can be maintained longer compared to reflexive attention.

• Reflexive attention, also called exogenous attention, is the involuntary reorienting of attention toward a sudden or important event. It is considered a bottom-up process, triggered by sensory inputs from lower levels of the nervous system. It is studied using peripheral spatial cuing tasks. Reflexive attention rapidly orients to interesting stimuli but fades quickly unless the stimulus is important.

Brain Pathways

• Voluntary attention is governed by a dorsal frontoparietal network. Key components include the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and the Frontal Eye Field (FEF). Damage to the IPS can make voluntary shifts of attention difficult.

• Reflexive attention to novel stimuli is associated with a right temporoparietal network (right-sided system). Key regions include the temporoparietal junction (TPJ).

• Two subcortical systems also guide shifts of attention: the superior colliculus (in the midbrain) and the pulvinar (posterior thalamus).

Feature Search vs. Conjunction Search

• Feature search is a visual search for an item in which the target pops out right away because it possesses a unique attribute. Effortful voluntary attention isn't needed in a simple feature search.

• Conjunction search is a visual search for an item that is based on two or more features that together distinguish the target from distracters.

Conjunction searches are harder and take longer because several target features must be considered simultaneously. This relates to the binding problem.

Event-Related Potentials (ERPs)

Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) are created by averaging many EEG recordings from repeated experimental trials. They are a measure of brain electrical activity in response to specific stimuli. ERPs can track neural operations with excellent temporal resolution, which is the ability to track changes in the brain that occur very quickly. Specific ERP components, such as P1 and N1, are enhanced for attended stimuli compared to ignored ones, indicating attentional processing.

Hemispatial Neglect

Hemispatial neglect is an extraordinary attention syndrome where a person tends to completely disregard the left side of the world. It is often caused by strokes or other brain damage, particularly affecting the right hemisphere. It is linked to damage in the inferior parietal lobule of the parietal lobe, and the lesions often overlap with the right temporoparietal attention network, which includes the Temporoparietal Junction

Balint's Syndrome

Balint's syndrome is a dramatic disorder caused by bilateral damage to the parietal lobe regions implicated in the attention network. It consists of three principal symptoms:

• Oculomotor apraxia: Great difficulty steering visual gaze appropriately.

• Optic ataxia: Inability to accurately reach for objects using visual guidance.

• Simultagnosia: A profound restriction of attention, to the point that only one object or feature can be consciously observed at any moment. This is likened to an extreme narrowing of the attentional spotlight.

Default Mode Network

The default mode network is a large circuit of brain regions, including parts of the frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes, identified using fMRI. It seems to be selectively activated when we are at our most introspective and reflective. You could think of it as a daydream network. It is relatively deactivated during behavior directed toward external goals.

Elements of Consciousness

Consciousness is closely related to attention and is the state of being aware that we are conscious and can perceive what's going on in our minds and all around us. Basic elements of human consciousness that researchers agree on include:

• Perception (Self-recognition)

• Metacognition ("Thinking about thinking": the ability to consider the contents of one’s own thoughts and cognitions).

• Language use (generally considered exclusively human).

Executive Function

Executive function is a suite of high-level cognitive processes that control and organize lower-level cognitive functions in line with our thoughts and feelings. It is crucial for translating inner thoughts into behavior. A network of anterior forebrain sites dominated by the frontal lobes is crucial for executive function. The prefrontal cortex is suggested to be the main source of goal-driven behaviors.

It entails processes like analyzing important stimuli, weighing competing ideas and hypotheses, and governing the creation of suitable "plans" for future action. It draws on cognitive processes such as working memory, attention, and feedback utilization. Executive function involves at least three interrelated processes: (1) smooth task switching between different cognitive operations, (2) continual updating of information, and (3) monitoring ongoing performance. Delay of gratification is an example of an executive function process.