Have you ever thought how your body just reacts and does something instinctively, or how you take that extra second before crossing the road? That is all thanks to your frontal lobe, but more specifically, the prefrontal cortex; but what is its function?
The function of the prefrontal cortex is to control cognitive functions such as regulating critical body functions such as movement, creativity, impulse control, emotional responses, moral behavior, fear responses, intuition, perseverance, and self-awareness.
The prefrontal cortex can be summarised as making up the person you are, how you process everyday situations, and how you react to fear, love and anger. Let’s look at the prefrontal cortex more in-depth and delve into this part of the brain.
What Are The Critical Functions Of The Prefrontal Cortex?Why Is The Prefrontal Cortex Significant?How Does The Prefrontal Cortex Develop?What Happens If Your Frontal Lobe Is Damaged?What Can Damage The Prefrontal Cortex?Clinical Observations Regarding The Prefrontal CortexConclusion
What Are The Critical Functions Of The Prefrontal Cortex?
Why Is The Prefrontal Cortex Significant?
How Does The Prefrontal Cortex Develop?
What Happens If Your Frontal Lobe Is Damaged?
What Can Damage The Prefrontal Cortex?
Clinical Observations Regarding The Prefrontal Cortex
Conclusion
Theprefrontal cortexis situated in the frontal lobes of the brain. It has everything to do with the higher-level functions of the brain in day-to-day events. The prefrontal cortex is divided into three parts: the DLPFC or Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex, the OFC or Orbitofrontal Cortex, and the VMPFC or Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex.
The DLPFT / Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex
The topmost part of theentire prefrontal cortexis called the Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. It manages the areas ofworking memory, cognitive functions or flexibility, and planning. This area specializes in directing and maintaining attention on a task as well as problem-solving
While a person is focused on a task, the working memory becomes engaged with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. It connects with the hippocampus to consolidate and retrieve long-term memories.
If a person suffers an injury or dysfunction in this area, it can affect the verbal expression integration with emotions, working and long-term memory, and processing in the hippocampus.
This memory deficit is observed in people diagnosed with PTSD. This is because the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is underactive. On the opposite side, other deficits manifest as low spontaneity and ADD due to the inability to maintain focus.
The left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex manages approach behavior, and the right side deals with avoidant behaviors.
The OFC / Orbitofrontal Cortex
The orbitofrontal cortex is involved in cognitively processing our decision-making but, more accurately, the decisions made based on our emotions. The reason is that the OFC is closely connected to the limbic system.
The orbitofrontal cortex plays a prominent role in theregulation of emotions and how social attachments are formed. Emotional and sensory information accumulates here and is processed accordingly, integrating internal and external interactions.
From these important interactions, the OFC interprets these into categories and chooses the appropriate response, such as grasping a joke, to determine if the joke was funny or sarcastic.
The VMPFC / Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex
The ventromedial prefrontal cortex is connected to the temporal lobe, the olfactory system, the amygdala, the thalamus, and the ventral segmental area. Because of these connections, the VMPFChelps make decisions considering the bigger picture, not individual bits of information.
To regulate emotions, the OFC and the VMPFC work together insocial situations where decisions are to be made and, if we make mistakes, to learn from that experience. When we need to make ajudgment call, this area of the brain is activated and draws from the present situation and past experiences or memory.
The VMPFC can help ussuppress negative feelings and emotions, boost our courage, and deal with shame, guilt, and compassion.
The Full Range Of Prefrontal Cortex Functions –
How Are These Functions Relatable in Everyday Situations?
The prefrontal cortex is sosignificantthat your body cannot fully function without it. Here are a few interesting facts about it -
The prefrontal cortex is the final part of the brain todevelop fully, taking almost 30 years. Children are born with a functioning prefrontal cortex, but it is not mature as yet. It takes years to fully develop intuition and decision-making skills, for example.
As an adolescent, the brain develops a multitude of synapses, and the connections volumize the communication areas of the brain. This network branching allows for more advanced learning and decision-making skills.
As a young adolescent, the individual can make risk-based assessments and decisions, but because the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system have not fully integrated yet, their choices can still reflect their immaturity.
Many teenagers or young adolescents suffer from anxiety because their brain determines everything as a threat or a life-threatening outcome. They do not possess the rationale to distinguish between real and fiction. The brain tries to protect the young adult in this manner.
Teenagers exposed to more mature peers will develop faster, and their prefrontal cortex may develop faster.
An accident thatdamagesthe frontal lobes of the brain is not necessarily life-threatening, but it can cause permanent changes in various areas of the body’s function. There are many documented frontal lobe injuries where the patients displayed personality changes.
Symptoms Of Frontal Lobe Damage
Many things can cause damage to the frontal lobes and the prefrontal cortex, some are severe, and others are less problematic, namely –
What Treatments Are Available For Prefrontal Cortex Damage?
Depending on the type of injury and how much damage has been done to the prefrontal cortex, a team of specialists will determine the best possible program. Thesetreatmentsmay include the following –
Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, may cause permanent damage to the frontal lobe and prefrontal cortex, needing medication and physical therapy combined.
The following observations are made regarding the prefrontal cortex in clinical psychology.
As you get older and start to reminisce about things, places, people, and events from your youth, your brain relies on the strong connections between the prefrontal cortex and the rest of the brain.
This section of the brain is an important part of the sentience and existence we as humans enjoy. It will not be impossible to live or function without a prefrontal cortex, but it will significantly alter the quality of life.
Resources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefrontal_cortex
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499919/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2907136/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532981/
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2015.00211/full
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Reference this article:Practical Psychology. (2022, August).Prefrontal Cortex Function.Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/prefrontal-cortex-function/.Practical Psychology. (2022, August). Prefrontal Cortex Function. Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/prefrontal-cortex-function/.Copy
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Practical Psychology. (2022, August).Prefrontal Cortex Function.Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/prefrontal-cortex-function/.Practical Psychology. (2022, August). Prefrontal Cortex Function. Retrieved from https://practicalpie.com/prefrontal-cortex-function/.Copy
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