Periáñez J A, Barceló F
Departamento de Psicología, Universidad Complutense, Facultad de Psicologia, Madrid, España.
Rev Neurol. 2004;38(4):359-65.
In neuropsychology, executive functions have been defined as those that coordinate the flow of information processing in the brain. In the last decade its study has undergone an important development, partly due to the use of functional neuroimaging.
Electrophysiological techniques have also provided a link between two specific components of the event related brain potential (ERP) and certain control and monitoring processes, as those described in theoretical frameworks of executive functioning (i.e., Norman & Shallice). On the one hand, attentional set shifting paradigms allow us to relate the anteriorly (P3a; latency 300-350 ms) and posteriorly (P3b; latency 450-600 ms) distributed components of the so called 'novelty P3', with a more general mechanism of attentional set shifting that could account for both stimulus and task novelty. On the other hand, 'error related negativity' (ERN or En) has shown its sensitivity to action monitoring (i.e., error detection and error correction processes), during the execution of response selection RT tasks.
The comprehension of these two executive processes represents critical aspects in our understanding of brain function, and has direct applications to the design of both theoretical models and assessment and rehabilitation programs for patients with dysexecutive disorders.
在神经心理学中，执行功能被定义为协调大脑信息处理流程的功能。在过去十年中，对执行功能的研究取得了重要进展，部分原因是功能性神经成像技术的应用。
电生理技术也在事件相关脑电位（ERP）的两个特定成分与某些控制和监测过程之间建立了联系，如执行功能理论框架（即诺曼和沙利斯所描述的）中所述。一方面，注意力转换范式使我们能够将所谓“新奇P3”的前部成分（P3a；潜伏期300 - 350毫秒）和后部成分（P3b；潜伏期450 - 600毫秒）与一种更普遍的注意力转换机制联系起来，这种机制可以解释刺激和任务的新奇性。另一方面，“错误相关负波”（ERN或En）在反应选择RT任务执行过程中，已显示出其对动作监测（即错误检测和错误纠正过程）的敏感性。
理解这两个执行过程是我们理解脑功能的关键方面，并且对执行功能障碍患者的理论模型设计以及评估和康复计划都有直接应用。
