Abstract
Based on a 'Theory of Visual Attention' (TVA), whole and partial report of brief letter arrays is presented as a diagnostic tool to estimate four clinically significant attentional components: perceptual processing speed, visual working memory storage capacity, efficiency of top-down control, and spatial distribution of attention. The procedure used was short enough to be applicable within a standard clinical setting. Two brain-damaged patients, selected based on lesion location and neuropsychological test profile, were compared to a control group of 22 healthy subjects. One patient with a right inferior parietal lesion showed a pattern of non-spatially and spatially lateralized attention deficits that is typically found in neglect patients. Results from the second patient supported the decisive role of superior frontal brain structures for top-down control of visual attention. This double dissociation supports the hypothesis that, even with a short version of whole and partial report, valid and meaningful results can be obtained in the neuropsychological assessment of attention deficits. The potential and constraints of TVA-based parameter estimation for the clinical application are discussed.
| Translated title of the contribution | evidence from two patients with frontal or parietal damage |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Journal | Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| Pages (from-to) | 843-54 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| ISSN | 1355-6177 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2005 |
Keywords
- Attention
- Central Nervous System Cysts
- Female
- Frontal Lobe
- Functional Laterality
- Humans
- Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery
- Intelligence Tests
- Male
- Memory, Short-Term
- Middle Aged
- Neuropsychological Tests
- Occipital Lobe
- Tomography, X-Ray Computed
- Visual Perception