The Separate and Cumulative Effects of TBI and PTSD on Cognitive Function and Emotional Control
Abstract
Three areas emerged where the PTSD/mTBI participants showed strengths in executive control functions: (1) overriding conflicting response cues in a flanker task, (2) overcoming proactive interference in working memory (suppressing material that is no longer relevant), and (3) stopping a motor response that was already planned. These strengths are closely related to other executive functions that were weaker in the PTSD/mTBI participants. They showed pronounced deficits in (1) motor response inhibition, (2) consistency in responding, and (3) control over emotional reactions to trauma reminders. Although they were not uniformly impaired in multitasking, the patients showed behavioral and electrophysiological deficits in working memory retrieval that became apparent only when they performed a secondary task during the delay interval. Ultimately, these types of dissociations are informative for demonstrating that PTSD/mTBI can spare some important cognitive abilities. These strengths could be exploited in future developments of psychotherapy and cognitive rehabilitation techniques.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA573364
Entities
People
- Diane Swick
Organizations
- University of California