preview

The Frontal Lobe Essay

Better Essays

Neuroanatomy Essay The frontal lobe is an executive brain area that merges information from other brain systems into a meaningful plan of action. The frontal lobes help individuals anticipate behavior, make critical judgments, survey situations, and organize ideas. The frontal lobes are crucial for thinking because they help process information to make decisions about the future. The frontal lobes do not carry out this process independently of other structures in the brain. It is through the connection with other centers, like the sensory centers where information from the outside world is formed, memory centers where information is stored, and the motor centers where the final decision to act is taken. The frontal lobes allow individuals …show more content…

Damage to the rostral prefrontal cortex effects metacognition, which impairs the integration and coordination of motivational, emotional, and executive capacities (Stuss, 2011). The frontal lobes are the base of emotions and judgments related to (a) sympathy, the ability to feel empathy for and understand other individuals feelings; (b) understanding humor, or certain word plays; (c) recognizing sarcasm, irony, and deception; and (d) the ability to understand other’s mental processes (Stuss, 2011). In Raphael’s case, his frontal lobes could be responsible for his behaviors in interpersonal relationships with his teammates, coaches, classmates, teachers, and friends. The frontal lobes are also responsible for the ability to sequence events (Stuss, 2011). For Raphael, the functioning of sequencing events is important for his role as a placekicker. He must be able to approach the football and preform a series of movements such as bending his knees, leaning in at the waist, taking three strides, and then kicking the ball. The frontal lobes also control the function of flexibility in thinking processes, without flexibility in thinking a person becomes fixed on a single thought (Stuss, 2011). Raphael uses flexibility in thinking processes during game situations and it allows him to choose between

Get Access