Structure
The frontal lobes are the portion of the cerebrum anterior to the Rolandic fissure and superior to the Sylvian fissure. The functional subdivisions of the frontal lobes include the primary motor area, premotor area, frontal eye fields, dorsolateral area, orbital area, anterior cingulate gyrus/supplementary motor areas, and basal forebrain (see Fig. 1). The primary motor area subserves pyramidal motor functions, the premotor area is involved in sensorimotor integration and praxis, and the frontal eye fields control volitional eye movement and visual search. Damage to these zones generally results in relatively simple disorders of motor functioning (e.g., hemiparesis, volitional gaze disturbance, apraxia).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences and Readings
Barbas, H., & Pandya, D. N. (1989). Architecture and intrinsic connections of the prefrontal cortex in the rhesus monkey. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 286, 353–357.
Goldman-Rakic, P. (1987). Circuitry of the primate prefrontal cortex and regulation of behavior by representational memory. In F. Plum & V. Mountcastle (Eds.), Handbook of physiology, the nervous system, and higher functions of the brain. (Sect. 1 (Vol. 5, pp. 373–417). Bethesda: American Psychological Society.
Malloy, P., & Richardson, E. (1994). Assessment of frontal lobe functions. Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 6, 399–410.
Mega, M., & Cummings, J. (1994). Frontal-subcortical circuits and neuropsychiatric disorders. Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 6, 358–370.
Pandya, D. N., & Barnes, C. L. (1987). Architecture and connections of the frontal lobe. In E. Perecman (Ed.), The frontal lobes revisited (pp. 41–72). New York: IRBN Press.
Pandya, D. N., & Yeterian, E. H. (1990). Prefrontal cortex in relation to other cortical areas in rhesus monkey: Architecture and connections. In H. B. M. Uylings, C. G. Van Eden, J. P. C. DeBruin, M. A. Corner, & M. G. P. Feestra (Eds.), The prefrontal cortex: Its structure, function, and pathology, progress in brain research (Vol. 85, pp. 63–94). Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Rubin, R. D., Schwarb, H., Lucas, H. D., Dulas, M. R., & Cohen, N. J. (2017). Dynamic hippocampal and prefrontal contributions to memory processes and representations blur the boundaries of traditional cognitive domains. Brain Sciences, 7(7), 82. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci7070082. Published online 12 July 2017.
Salloway, S., Malloy, P., & Duffy, J. (2001). The frontal lobes and neuropsychiatric illness. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this entry
Cite this entry
Malloy, P. (2018). Prefrontal Cortex. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_1904
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_1904
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-57110-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-57111-9
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences