The Neuropsychology of Everyday Life: Issues in Development and Rehabilitation (Foundations of Neuropsychology Book 3)

For a period of some fifteen years following completion of my internship training in clinical psychology (1950-1951) at the Washington University School of Medicine and my concurrent successful navigation through that school's neuroanatomy course, clinical work in neuropsychology for me and the psychologists of my generation consisted almost exclusively of our trying to help our physician colleagues differentiate patients with neurologic disorders from those with psychiatric disorders. In time, experience led all of us from the several disciplines involved in this enterprise to the conclusion that the crude diagnostic techniques available to us circa 1945-1965 had garnered little valid information on which to base such complex, differential diagnostic decisions. It now is gratifying to look back and review the remarkable progress that has occurred in the field of clinical neuropsychology in the four decades since I was a graduate student. In the late 1940s such pioneers as Ward Halstead, Alexander Luria, George Yacorzynski, Hans-Lukas Teuber, and Arthur Benton already were involved in clinical studies that, by the late 1960s, would markedly have improved the quality of clinical practice. However, the only psychological tests that the clinical psychologist of my immediate post­ Second Wodd War generation had as aids for the diagnosis of neurologically based conditions involving cognitive deficit were such old standbys as the Wechsler-Bellevue, Rorschach, Draw A Person, Bender Gestalt, and Graham Kendall Memory for Designs Test. For a period of some fifteen years following completion of my internship training in clinical psychology (1950-1951) at the Washington University School of Medicine and my concurrent successful navigation through that school's neuroanatomy course, clinical work in neuropsychology for me and the psychologists of my generation consisted almost exclusively of trying to help our physician colleagues differentiate patients with neurologic from those with psychiatric disorders. In time, experience led all of us from the several disciplines involved in this enterprise to the conclusion that the crude diag­ nostic techniques available to us circa 1945-1965 had garnered us little valid information upon which to base such complex, differential diagnostic decisions. It now is gratifying to look back and review the remarkable progress that has occurred in the field of clinical neuropsychology in the four decades since I was a graduate student. In the late 1940s such pioneers as Ward Halstead, Alexander Luria, George Yacorzynski, Hans-Lukas Teuber, and Arthur Benton already were involved in clinical studies that, by the late 1960s, would markedly have improved the quality of clinical practice. However, the only psychological tests that the clinical psychologist of my immediate post-Second World War generation had as aids for the diagnosis of neurologically based conditions involving cognitive deficit were such old standbys as the Wechsler­ Bellevue, Rorschach, Draw A Person, Bender Gestalt, and Graham Kendall Memory for Designs Test. Introduction To The Neuropsychology Of Everyday Life / David E. Tupper And Keith D. Cicerone -- A Review Of The Ecological Validity Of Neuropsychology Tests / Mary B. Acker -- Integrating Neuropsychological And Real-life Data : A Neuropsychological Model For Assessing Everyday Functioning / Richard I. Naugle And Gordon J. Chelune -- Use Of Demographic Information In Neuropsychological Assessment / Laetitia L. Thompson And Robert K. Heaton -- A Functional Assessment System For Real-world Rehabilitation Outcomes / William J. Haffey And Mark V. Johnston -- Assessment Of Functional Communication / Leila L. Hartley -- Clinical Memory Assessment : Matching The Method To The Aim / Alan Sunderland -- Quality-of-life Assessment In Neuropsychology / A. John Mcsweeny -- Assessment Of Cognitive Competency / Paul L. Wang. Impact Of Memory Disorder On Everyday Life : Awareness Of Deficits And Return To Work / Daniel L. Schacter, Elizabeth L. Glisky, And Susan M. Mcglynn -- Buttering A Hot Cup Of Coffee : An Approach To The Study Of Errors Of Action In Patients With Brain Damage / Nathaniel H. Mayer ... [et Al.] -- A Behavioral Approach To Activities Of Daily Living / William J. Warzak And Jacquelin Kilburn -- Neuropsychological Aspects Of Motor Vehicle Operation / C. Alan Hopewell And A.h. Van Zomeren. Edited By David E. Tupper, Keith D. Cicerone. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. DAVID W. ELLIS AND ANNE-LISE CHRISTENSEN 1 A BRIEF OVERVIEW In the past, most people who sustained catastrophic brain injury died. However, over the past several decades, sophisticated medical diagnostic techniques such as computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), along with advances in emergency trauma procedures and neurosurgical pro­ cedures (e. g., intracranial pressure monitoring), have dramatically increased the survival rates for people who have survived such trauma. At the same time, because of population growth, the number of victims of brain trauma (primarily automobile accidents) has also risen [1]. As a result of their injuries, many of these people have developed severe disabilities that affect their lives and the lives of everyone around them. For those who survive, and their families, mere survival is not enough. Attention must be paid to the quality of their lives after the traumatic event. During the past 15 years, there has been an increasing focus on the develop­ ment of treatment techniques for brain injuries. Although the principal focus of this text is on the neuropsychological (i. e., neurological and psychological) aspects of treatment-both theory and technique-the book is also directed towards the broad variety of issues that affect survivors, their families, health­ care professionals, and the social milieu. Front Matter....Pages i-xv Introduction: Developmental and Rehabilitative Issues in the Neuropsychology of Everyday Life....Pages 1-14 Front Matter....Pages 15-15 The Neuropsychology of Childhood Learning and School Behavior....Pages 17-43 The Neuropsychological Determinants of Functional Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic....Pages 45-92 Cognition and Watching Television....Pages 93-108 Epilepsy in Children and Adults....Pages 109-133 Assessment of Everyday Functioning in Normal and Malignant Memory Disordered Elderly....Pages 135-181 Life Span Perspective on Practical Intelligence....Pages 183-197 Front Matter....Pages 199-199 A Rationale for Family Involvement in Long-Term Traumatic Head Injury Rehabilitation....Pages 201-213 Psychosocial Consequences of Significant Brain Injury....Pages 215-256 Working: The Key to Normalization after Brain Injury....Pages 257-269 Neuropsychological Rehabilitation: Treatment of Errors in Everyday Functioning....Pages 271-292 Long-Term Ajustment to Traumatic Bain Injury....Pages 293-309 Back Matter....Pages 311-313 In the earlier volume to this set, contributors addressed some of the fundamental concerns and practices currently raised during neuropsychology's maturation into a more ecological science particularly when neuropsychology is considered an assessment or diagnostic discipline. Everyday behavior is often thought to be determined by an interaction among environmental, organismic, and stimulus variables.