Pre-frontal executive committee for perception,working memory,attention, long-term memory,motor control,and thinking: a tutorial review

As an explicit organizing metaphor, memory aid, and conceptual framework, the prefrontal cortex may be viewed as a five-member 'Executive Committee,' as the prefrontal-control extensions of five sub-and-posterior-cortical systems: (1) the 'Perceiver' (dominant-right-hemisphere ventral-lateral prefrontal cortex--VL/PERC-PFC) is the frontal extension of the ventral perceptual stream (the VL/PERC system) which represents the world and self in object coordinates; (2) the 'Verbalizer' (dominant-left-hemisphere ventral-lateral prefrontal cortex system--VL/VERB-PFC) is the frontal extension of the language stream (the VL/VERB system) which represents the world and self in language coordinates; (3) the 'Motivator' (ventral/medial-orbital pre-frontal cortex--VMO-PFC) is the frontal cortical extension of a subcortical extended-amygdala stream (the VMO system) which represents the world and self in motivational/emotional coordinates; (4) the 'Attender' (dorsal-medial/anterior cingulate--DM/AC-PFC) is the frontal cortical extension of a subcortical extended-hippocampal stream (the DM/AC system) which represents the world and self in spatiotemporal coordinates and directs attention to internal and external events; and (5) the 'Coordinator' (the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex--DL-PFC) is the frontal extension of the dorsal perceptual stream (the DL system) which represents the world and self in body- and eye-coordinates and controls willed action and working memory. This tutorial review examines the interacting roles of these five systems in perception, working memory, attention, long-term memory, motor control, and thinking.     

Generative Concern, Political Commitment, and Charitable Actions

The implications of psychosocial generativity (Erikson, 1950) for understanding contemporary politics were explored. Study 1 replicated, in two samples, previous findings that generativity concerns are related to a variety of political activities, including the expenditure of time and money in support of political organizations. Using path analyses, Study 2 extended these findings and demonstrated how midlife generativity concerns interacted with political orientation and interest in politics to produce stronger relationships with giving. These findings suggest that people view the political arena as one important way to improve society and thereby manifest cultural generativity. Although focusing on the domain of politics, these studies highlight the complexity of generativity as a construct; broad concerns with generativity operate within the context of ideological commitments to produce greater levels of generative activity.     

Assessment Centre Observation Procedures: An Experimental Comparison of Traditional,Checklist and Coding Methods

Concern about the construct validity of assessment centre judgements has led to calls for research into observers’ cognitive processes. In an experiment comparing the Traditional observation procedure against use of a Behavioural Checklist and of Behavioural Coding, six outcome variables were examined. The methods were found to yield similar outcomes in terms of accuracy of judgement, accuracy of written evidence, correlation between dimension ratings, and attitude toward the method employed. However, significant between-method differences were observed in variability between observers and in their willingness to recommend a procedure. It is argued that Behavioural Coding has special merit in assessment centres; the method reduces the cognitive demands placed on assessors, and valuably structures their information-processing. Traditional objections to simultaneous observation and classification are shown to be inappropriate.     

Alcohol problems and relapse: Can the clinic combat the community?

Despite over a decade of research and debate into the issue of relapse the majority of people in treatment for alcohol-related problems still relapse. In this paper the results of an innovative relapse prevention and management programme are reported. It was found that a cognitive-behavioural package of strategies reduced the likelihood of relapse. On average, clients receiving this experimental package took four times longer to return to any alcohol use and seven times longer to return to ‘heavy drinking’ than did a conventional treatment control group. However, notwithstanding these results, 60 per cent of the experimental group did return to harmful drinking. The authors question whether further refinement of these procedures is possible, and suggest that if relapse rates are to be further reduced then greater attention needs to be given by counsellors to clients' social environment.     

Index to Volume 29

Other Index

Index to Volume 29     

Changes in ego development in the wake of September 11

In a longitudinal study using the Washington University Sentence Completion Test (WUSCT), we examined changes in ego development in response to the events of September 11, 2001. A sample of 24 individuals responded to the WUSCT in both the summer and fall of 2001, before and after the events of September 11. A significant decrease in mean ego level was found following September 11, as well as more equivocal support for an increase in variability in responses to the WUSCT.