It doesn’t matter how smart teens are or how well they scored on the SAT or ACT. Good judgment isn’t something they can excel in, at least not yet. Show
The rational part of a teen’s brain isn’t fully developed and won’t be until age 25 or so. In fact, recent research has found that adult and teen brains work differently. Adults think with the prefrontal cortex, the brain’s rational part. This is the part of the brain that responds to situations with good judgment and an awareness of long-term consequences. Teens process information with the amygdala. This is the emotional part. In teens' brains, the connections between the emotional part of the brain and the decision-making center are still developing—and not always at the same rate. That’s why when teens have overwhelming emotional input, they can’t explain later what they were thinking. They weren’t thinking as much as they were feeling. What's a parent to do?You’re the most important role model your kids have. Sure, their friends are important to them, but the way you behave and fulfill your responsibilities will have a profound and long-lasting effect on your children.
Parents tend to jump in with advice to try to fix their children’s problems or place blame. But this can make teens less likely to be open with their parents in the future. You want to make it emotionally safe and easy for them to come to you so you can be part of their lives. Signs of troubleIt’s normal for teens to be down or out of sorts for a couple of days. But if you see a significant mood or behavioral change that lasts more than 2 weeks, it could mean something else is going on, such as depression. If you think your teen could be depressed, promptly seek professional treatment for your child. Depression is serious and, if left untreated, can be life-threatening. Your teen needs your guidance, even though they may think they don’t. Understanding their development can help you support them in becoming independent, responsible adults.
The posterior parietal cortex and frontal cortical areas to which it connects are responsible for sensorimotor transformations. This review covers new research on four components of this transformation process: planning, decision making, forward state estimation, and relative-coordinate representations. These sensorimotor functions can be harnessed for neural prosthetic operations by decoding intended goals (planning) and trajectories (forward state estimation) of movements as well as higher cortical functions related to decision making and potentially the coordination of multiple body parts (relative-coordinate representations). Cited by (0)Copyright © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. The frontal lobe is the home of much of what makes us human. It plays a role in everything from movement to intelligence, helps us anticipate the consequences of our actions, and aids in the planning of future actions. Publish Date: Nov 04, 2020
The frontal lobe is the home of much of what makes us human. It plays a role in everything from movement to intelligence, helps us anticipate the consequences of our actions, and aids in the planning of future actions. This part of the brain is the newest from an evolutionary perspective, and is the last to develop, making the frontal lobe both highly malleable and susceptible to developmental damage. Where is the Frontal Lobe Located?Neuroscientists have traditionally divided the brain's cerebrum into four lobes: the frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal. The cerebrum is the newest part of the brain to have evolved, and houses most “higher” functions, such as conscious thought, morality, memory, and the ability to learn through memorization, deduction, and other complex processes. The frontal lobe plays a key role in this complex set of cognitive functions. Named for its location, the frontal lobe is situated toward the front of the cerebrum, just behind the forehead and under the frontal skull bones. It sits atop the temporal lobe, in front of the parietal lobe, and apart from the occipital lobe, with portions of the limbic system—sometimes called the limbic lobe crossing all four brain lobes, including the frontal lobe. The central sulcus separates the frontal and parietal lobes, with the lateral sulcus separating the frontal and temporal lobes. What Does the Frontal Lobe Do?The frontal lobe is the slowest part of the brain to mature, continuing to create and prune neural connections until a person's mid-twenties. This means that brain damage early in life renders the frontal lobe particularly vulnerable, potentially affecting behavior and cognition forever. The frontal lobe is involved in a wide range of “higher” cognitive functions. Although all mammals have a frontal lobe, highly social mammals, such as dolphins and primates, tend to have more developed frontal lobes. This suggests that our social interactions may play a key role in the development of intelligence, and that the brain must devote significant resources to responding to the demands of social interactions. Humans have larger and more developed frontal lobes than any other animal. Some of the many functions of the frontal lobe include:
What Are Some Important Structures in the Frontal Lobe?Most neuroscientists divide the frontal lobe into four distinct regions, each containing a number of vital structures. Those include:
How Does the Frontal Lobe Interact With Other Areas of the Body?Though the frontal lobe is often deemed the seat of consciousness, it cannot think or feel alone. No single brain region can fully control any other region or function without heavy input from the body, other parts of the brain, and the outside world. The frontal lobe is no exception, and works alongside all other brain lobes to coordinate consciousness. The frontal lobe, like all brain regions, connects with the limbic lobe, which houses brain structures associated with the limbic system. The limbic system controls automatic and primitive reactions, but these reactions are heavily dependent upon emotion and experience. Because the frontal lobe is home to much consciousness, its input into the limbic lobe is vital. For instance, an emotional reaction to a traumatic experience can affect limbic functioning forever, and the memories housed in the frontal lobe may strengthen limbic system reactions over time. Because the frontal lobe is home to many higher functions, it is especially dependent upon experiences and memories. That means that social interactions, education, and similar experiences heavily affect the functioning of this important brain region. Sensory input also plays a key role, since the frontal lobe relies on memory, previous experience, and information about the surrounding world to judge the potential effects of future actions. What Happens when The Frontal Lobe is Damaged?Most people experience some atrophy in the frontal lobe in their senior years, with frontal lobe volume decreasing by .5%-1% each year beginning around age 60. This slow and steady decline accounts for many of the changes, such as mild memory loss and difficulty with finding some words, associated with normal aging. More rapid frontal lobe decline can lead to symptoms of dementia. The frontal lobe is highly vulnerable to damage for at least two reasons: first, as the last brain region to fully develop, developmental anomalies—including child abuse, an insufficiently stimulating environment, drug use, infections, and other factors—can permanently alter its development. Second, the frontal lobe's home in the front of the forehead renders it highly vulnerable, especially to auto accident-related injuries, violence, and falls. Even relatively minor blows can rattle the brain sufficiently to impede frontal lobe functioning. The effect of frontal lobe damage is dependent on its location and severity, as well as how quickly it is detected. Children who face serious abuse may live with frontal lobe damage for years, while car accident survivors often get more immediate help. Treatment for frontal lobe injuries typically includes medical and psychological treatment, since the frontal lobe houses the emotional life and personality. Overall health, age at the time of injury, quality of medical treatment, and an active and stimulating environment can all affect recovery trajectories. Seniors are more vulnerable to frontal lobe damage because their frontal lobes are already deteriorating. Likewise, people living in unstimulating environments, or who do not regularly “exercise” their brains may experience more rapid deterioration and only minimal improvement. Frontal lobe damage can have extensive and far-reaching damage, as in the case of frontal lobe dementia, which leads to aggression, behavior changes, and difficulties with language. Some other consequences of frontal lobe damage include:
Sources:
Which area of the brain is involved in planning anticipating and decisionThe last part of the brain to mature is the prefrontal cortex, the area for anticipation, planning, and impulse control. The infant's cortex consists of four to six thin layers of tissue that cover the brain.
What lobe is involved in planning and decisionThe frontal lobe is located behind the forehead, at the front of the brain. These lobes are part of the cerebral cortex and is the largest brain structure. The frontal lobe's main functions are associated typically with 'higher' cognitive functions, including decision-making, problem-solving, thought and attention.
|