False recognition after a right frontal lobe infarction: memory for general and specific information

Neuropsychologia. 1997 Jul;35(7):1035-49. doi: 10.1016/s0028-3932(97)00029-8.

Abstract

We previously reported a case study of a man with right frontal lobe damage, BG, who showed extraordinarily high false alarm rates on remember-know recognition tests (Schacter, D. L. et al., Neuropsychologia, 1996, Vol. 34, pp. 793-808). Experiment 1 extends his high false alarm rate to yes-no recognition tests. BG typically gives false 'remember' responses on remember-know tests, and this pattern was uninfluenced when he was asked to explain the basis for his 'remember' responses (Experiments 2 and 3). When BG was given a semantic encoding task, he stopped giving 'remember'-based false alarms (Experiment 4). Signal detection analyses revealed that BG had a discrimination deficit and an abnormally liberal response bias (especially for 'remember' responses) in most conditions. Overall, BG's high false alarm rate is interpreted as reflecting an over-reliance on the general similarity between a test item and the study episode.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Association Learning / physiology
  • Attention / physiology
  • Brain Damage, Chronic / diagnosis
  • Brain Damage, Chronic / physiopathology*
  • Brain Mapping
  • Cerebral Infarction / diagnosis
  • Cerebral Infarction / physiopathology*
  • Discrimination Learning / physiology
  • Dominance, Cerebral / physiology*
  • Frontal Lobe / physiopathology*
  • Generalization, Psychological / physiology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mental Recall / physiology*
  • Verbal Learning / physiology