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Neuropsychology is an interdisciplinary science that combines the knowledge and methods of neurology, i.e. the field of medicine related to the brain, and psychology. Therefore, it deals with the relationship between individual brain regions and the way people function, reason and learn. Both patients with brain injuries and patients with cognitive problems can benefit from the services of a neuropsychologist.
Neuropsychology – types and tasks
As early as the nineteenth century, it was believed that the brain is divided into different areas that are responsible for separate functions of human thinking. This theory was called phrenology and it was used to explain various diseases and disorders of cognitive functions: aphasia (speech disorders), apraxia (movement disorders), agraphia (writing disorders) and others. With time, as the sciences of the brain itself developed, and with the development of clinical psychology, research methods and ways of explaining certain phenomena have developed, emerging a separate field of science – neuropsychology.
The belief that certain areas of the human brain are related to specific processes (such as writing, reading, movement) meant that neuropsychologia She began to use these accounts in two cases: disorders in human behavior resulting from brain damage and difficulties with acquiring new abilities or information, i.e. with learning. We can therefore speak of clinical neuropsychology and educational neuropsychology.
Clinical neuropsychology deals with both brain damage (e.g. as a result of accidents) and the effects of strokes, complications after brain surgery (which may be necessary e.g. when removing tumors) and the consequences of neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease .
Educational neuropsychology however, it deals mainly with children who have problems with learning at school, when these problems are of a neurological basis (and not, for example, result from the environment or neuroses). These include dysgraphia, dyslexia, akalkulia (dyscalculia), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Educational neuropsychology She also deals with children suffering from general developmental diseases such as cerebral palsy, autism, Down syndrome or Asperger syndrome.
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What does a visit to a neuropsychologist look like?
Neuropsycholog diagnoses patients by assessing their cognitive processes. It examines memory, ability to speak, concentrate attention and abstract thinking. For tools neuropsychologii include a variety of standardized tests and experimental methods. Interview with the patient and family members is also extremely helpful in assessing the patient.
What information does it obtain neuropsychologw during diagnosis? He can assess what intellectual processes have been inhibited in the patient and to what extent this has happened. In case of educational neuropsychology it is also possible to determine the actual causes of emerging disorders, i.e. to exclude purely psychological causes.
Neuropsychological diagnosis makes it possible to determine the degree of disability, disease progression or treatment effectiveness.
Neuropsychology and therapy – can neuropsychological disorders be treated?
While some brain damage is irreversible, it is neuropsychologia it can reverse or weaken a large part of the disorder. Thanks to rehabilitation, patients can return to function independently or start learning more efficiently. Neuropsychology helps in training memory in people suffering from amnesia, allows to strengthen concentration of attention or overcome speech, writing, reading or counting disorders.
One of the tasks is in case of more severe injuries neuropsychologii is to make the patient aware of the existing dysfunctions. It happens that patients are not aware of them. The brain works in a specific way and, for example, a patient whose handwriting has become completely unreadable may perceive it as completely normal himself, and even be able to read it without any problems, although no one from the environment is able to do so. Therefore, in some cases, convincing the patient about the problem and gaining by him or her, at least partial, insight into the disorder is crucial for undertaking further therapy.
In the case of patients whose injuries are so severe that neuropsychologia is unable to undo cognitive changes, alternate coping with certain activities is being developed. Activities that are commonly considered to be similar, such as speaking and singing, can be assigned to different areas of the brain. In this case, failure in one of the activities does not affect the other – following the example given: people who stutter while speaking will have no problem stuttering while singing. While in this case it is not particularly helpful in everyday life, this type of dependence (or in fact: no dependence in the location of similar activities) helps to limit losses resulting from trauma to a specific part of the brain.