Article

Environmental dependency phenomena refer to the symptoms initially described by
Lhermitte (1983, 1984) under the terms of "utilization behavior" and "imitation
behavior". These clinical signs are linked to essential notions such as free-will
and human autonomy, and seem to be specific of the frontal pathology.
Surprisingly, few studies have addressed these symptoms and inconsistent
definitions are available. To investigate the theoretical and clinical
definitions of environmental dependency phenomena, three groups of neurological
patients (n=60) with frontal, subcortical, and posterior brain lesions were
compared. Clinically, our findings help to rehabilitate the definitions of
Lhermitte (1983, 1984) and challenge the classical interpretation in terms of an
executive control deficit.
The frontal specificity of the disorders and the lack
of relation between executive/behavioral deficits were supported. The right
orbitofrontal cortex seems particularly involved in environmental dependency.
These results offer some evidences for differentiate two historical concepts of
neuropsychology, namely the "frontal" and "dysexecutive" syndromes. A new
interpretation of environmental dependency phenomena is provided which could be
helpful to orient the neuropsychology of frontal syndrome.
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Langue : ANGLAIS