Posted: Jan 23, 2017 3:52 pm
Pebble wrote:DavidMcC wrote:Pebble wrote:
Don't quite follow. There does not appear to be any localised part of the brain that is the decision making centre.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prefrontal_cortexIn mammalian brain anatomy, the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is the cerebral cortex which covers the front part of the frontal lobe. The PFC contains Brodmann areas 9, 10, 11, 12, 46, and 47.
Many authors have indicated an integral link between a person's personality and the functions of the prefrontal cortex.[1] This brain region has been implicated in planning complex cognitive behavior, personality expression, decision making, and moderating social behaviour.[2] The basic activity of this brain region is considered to be orchestration of thoughts and actions in accordance with internal goals.[3]
No doubt important, but lobotomised patients are perfectly capable of decision making, however, the inhibitory part of decision modification appears to be lost. That does not necessarily affect all teh areas identified above, but the point I am trying to make is that it is a more generalised phenomenon than a purely focal centre - agreed with specialisation, some areas being more important than others.
OK, you can make decisions as such without a PFC, but the loss of inhibition is likely to damage the quality of decisions, possibly seriously, sometimes.
Sorry for late reply - I've had other matters to deal with, and this one required more thought than most.