Distinct patterns of word retrieval in right and left frontal lobe patients: a multidimensional perspective

Citation
S. Schwartz et J. Baldo, Distinct patterns of word retrieval in right and left frontal lobe patients: a multidimensional perspective, NEUROPSYCHO, 39(11), 2001, pp. 1209-1217
Citations number
34
Categorie Soggetti
Psycology,"Neurosciences & Behavoir
Journal title
NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA
ISSN journal
00283932 → ACNP
Volume
39
Issue
11
Year of publication
2001
Pages
1209 - 1217
Database
ISI
SICI code
0028-3932(2001)39:11<1209:DPOWRI>2.0.ZU;2-B
Abstract
Several studies have shown that patients with frontal lobe damage (FL) gene rate fewer words than control participants in verbal fluency tasks. In the current study, we were interested in assessing the quality of such verbal f luency data. Multidimensional exploratory techniques, namely, hierarchical clustering HC and correspondence analysis (CoA), were performed on verbal f luency data collected from 13 FL patients and 11 age-matched controls. HC o f individual word-profiles distinguished between patients with left frontal lobe (LFL) and right frontal lobe (RFL) lesions. CoA revealed that LFL pat ients generated unusual word-profiles, as evidenced by their peripheral loc ation on a CoA map, while RFL patients produced highly typical word-profile s. We would like to suggest that preserved functioning of the left frontal lobe might have constrained the responses of the RFL group resulting in typ ical word combinations, whereas preserved right frontal lobe functioning mi ght have mediated greater diversification in the responses of the LFL group . The present study shows that HC and CoA can be applied to neuropsychologi cal data to reveal complex relationships between cognitive performance and cerebral lesion sites. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.