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Epidemiological and laboratory research supports a relationship between acute alcohol intoxication and aggression. Recent data suggest that alcohol disrupts cognitive abilities associated with frontal lobe function. Moreover, neuropsychological research provides suggestive evidence that frontal lobe dysfunction may predispose an individual to increased aggression. The research recounted in this thesis was conducted to investigate the role of individual differences of cognitive abilities associated with the dorsolateral frontal cortex in aggressive behaviour and to test the hypothesis that alcohol indirectly potentiates aggression by impairing these cognitive abilities. The three experiments included in this thesis demonstrated that: (1) acute alcohol intoxication interferes with the ability to integrate previously acquired knowledge in the formulation of behavioral strategies; (2) individuals grouped according to performance on two neuropsychological tests of cognitive abilities associated with frontal lobe function differ in degree of aggressive response. Specifically, individuals in the lower versus upper performance quartiles became more aggressive when provoked; and (3) individuals in the upper cognitive performance quartile demonstrate significantly greater reductions of unprovoked aggression in response to monetary reward.

The ability to generate different responses, and the ability to inhibit inappropriate behaviour, were explored in patients with unilateral cerebral excisions. Site-of-lesion effects were found to interact with the sex of the subject, the time of test-administration, and the nature of the response criteria. In Part I, the Thurstone Word Fluency Test revealed impairments two weeks postoperatively in patients with frontal, temporal, or central-area lesions. In men, removals from the left cerebral hemisphere caused greater deficits than removals from the right, but only left central-area excisions resulted in long-lasting impairments. Patients with left frontal-lobe removals produced few words on a sentence-completion fluency task, but on visual-image fluency, no patient-group was impaired. In Part II, an inability to inhibit impulsive actions on risk-taking tasks was seen after frontal lobectomy, as was a tendency to disregard the instructions on a word-fluency task. These results are consistent with the fact that patients with frontal-lobe lesions described themselves on a behavioural-trait questionnaire as less flexible and more impulsive than did control subjects.

M.A. / With the advances achieved in medical technology in recent years, society is increasingly faced with the issue of determining how fit individuals are for reintegration in society following the event of traumatic brain injury. Together with Neurology and it's diagnostic capabilities, many other disciplines such as Neuropsychology, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, to name but a few, have placed strong emphasis on the rehabilitation of individuals with brain damage, with a view to reintegrate them into society. Besides the physical rehabilitation which aims at normalizing the individual's physical health, issues such as psychological ,cognitive and social functioning have been the focus of a great body of research in recent years. Whereas in the past the prognosis for many such patients in respect of returning to a normal life style were discouraging, health workers are now more optimistic in most cases regarding the individuals' probability to achieve a higher level of functioning after recovery. In this context, the individuals' ability to function in society, their ability to be integrated into the family and working environment and competence to be active and valued members of society have thus become the new aims which the therapeutic team together with the patient strive to achieve. With this in mind, rehabilitation teams now place greater emphasis and effort on optimizing recovery in the areas of cognitive and emotional competence. Amongst these issues, the individuals' competence to make moral judgements and socially adequate decisions in everyday living is of the utmost importance. This impacts on their ability to abide by social rules and norms which will determine their competence and desirability as active members in the family, social and working environments. This is the main focus of the present study. The issue of moral judgement and behaviour is central to this discussion, and a delineation of what defines morality and moral judgement is mandatory. Contributions to this analysis were found in the writings of the various authors and schools of thought presented here, and each of them has dealt with the theme of morality, moral behaviour and judgement from a different theoretical perspective. Theorists such as Lawrence Kohlberg made a major contribution to the understanding of the development of moral judgement through his stage theory, which forms one of the cornerstones of the present study. The site and the severity of the brain injury is paramount to the prognosis for rehabilitation. The frontal lobes have been described as the structures responsible for the widest range of symptoms and seen as the seat of intellect, responsible for deviations in moral and emotional functioning. An overview of the frontal lobes and associated cognitive functions as well as behaviors observed as a result of injury to these structures is presented. The existential-phenomenological system of inquiry has been described by its proponents as the most adequate to investigate phenomena relating to human behaviour, when an understanding of the subjective experience of the individuals involved is desired. For this reason this methodology is used in the present study to facilitate a qualitative analysis of the experience of brain injury particularly in respect of possible alterations in moral judgement and behaviour following the accident. The present investigation is based on interviews with three subjects and their primary caretakers, who answered questions regarding moral dilemmas. These dilemmas aim at tapping the individual's underlying reasoning processes when faced with the decision of what is right and wrong. The analysis and integration of the data obtained through these interviews reveals a complex cluster of alterations in thought and behaviour, much in line with those expected from patients suffering traumatic injury of the frontal lobes. Although different behaviours were revealed by each participant in this study, they were generally in line with the alterations described in the literature resulting from injury to the described brain areas. The value of this study lies in projecting a clearer picture of the experience of brain injury from the point of view of the victims as well as the close family members. Furthermore, analysis of data obtained in this investigation highlights certain typical behaviors and responses observed in individuals with such brain injuries, as described in the literature presented here.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed November 7, 2007). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This study analyzed the relationship between the OF functioning of 100 incarcerated male offenders and their psychopathy symptoms. The study's rejected hypothesis had predicted a significant relationship between measures of OF functioning and the Defective Affective Experience (DAE) and Impulsive and Irresponsible Behavioral Style (IIB) factors of the Cooke and Michie (2001) three-factor model of psychopathy. Regression analysis failed to demonstrate a relationship between OF functioning and the DAE and IIB factors. Group differences on OF functioning were not demonstrated between participants in the upper and lower quartiles of a summed DAE and IIB factor score. A general role for OF functioning in criminal behavior was suggested as two OF measures accounted for 14.9% of the variance of criminal convictions.

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