Neuropsychological Research

In a broad sense, neuropsychology stands for the branch of brain sciences that aims to understand how the structure and function of the brain relate to specific cognitive and psychological processes. The idea of developing a research field somewhere between neurology and cognitive psychology emerged in the 1960s as a result of studies conducted by both disciplines which, although using different methodologies and tools, were analysing the same issues. Neuropsychology particularly puts emphasis on the clinical and experimental study of the cognitive effects of brain injury or neurological diseases, taking models of normal cognitive functioning into account. Neuropsychological Research: A Review provides a meticulous overview of what has been achieved in the field of cognitive neuropsychology from its early beginnings in the 1960s and 1970s to the present day. Authors include some of the pioneers involved in the genesis of neuropsychology as an independent and distinct field of neuroscience. The comprehensive coverage includes language disorders, skilled movement disorders, recognition disorders, attentional and executive disorders, visuo-perceptual disorders, memory disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. This fascinating text forms an enjoyable tribute to the rich heritage of neuropsychology, and will be essential reading for researchers and students of neuropsychology, clinical psychology, cognitive psychology, and behavioural neuroscience.

Peter Mariën is a clinical neurolinguist in the department of Neurology at ZNA Middelheim Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium. He is professor in neurolinguistics and psycholinguistics at the Vrije Universiteit Brussels and the University of Ghent. His main area of research is situated in the field of clinical neurolinguistics and neuropsychology. Jubin Abutalebi is a cognitive neurologist and senior researcher at the Faculty of Psychology of the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milan, Italy. His research interests lie in the area of clinical neuropsychology and, specifically, language disorders in theory and practice.

Introduction. Homage to Luigi A. Vignolo. Dedication to a Pioneer in Neuropsychology. Section 1: Approaching the Brain. A Multiplicity of Intelligences. Neural Circuitry Underlying Language. Structural and Functional Neuroimaging in Neuropsychology: A Concise Overview. Section 2: Language Disorders. Aphasia and the Diagram Makers: An Update. Right Hemisphere Lesions and Language: Theoretic and Clinical Perspectives. Acquired Dyslexia and Dysgraphia. Developmental Dyslexia: From Neuropsychology to Genetics and Back Again. Aphasia Recovery: Neural Mechanisms. Aphasia Rehabilitation. Section 3: Skilled Movement, Music and Number Processing Disorders. The Forelimb Apraxias. Should We Make Aphasic Patients Sing? The Neuropsychology of Calculation and Number Processing. Section 4: Modality-specific Recognition Disorders. Perceptual Categorisation. Visual Agnosia. Auditory Agnosias. Somaesthetic Recognition Disorders. Section 5: Neglect, Attentional and Executive Disorders. Subcortical Neglect. Neuropsychology of Attention. Measuring Human Cognition On-line with Electrophysiological Methods: The Case of Selective Attention. The Frontal Lobe: Executive, Emotional and Neurological Functions. Section 6: Memory Disorders and Neurodegenerative Diseases. Memory: Structure, Function and Dysfunction. Effects of Aging and Dementia on Memory. Semantic Dementia: The Story So Far. Behavioural and Neuropsychological Correlates of Frontal lobe Features in Dementia. How the Brain Creates the Mind.