Human autonomy and the frontal lobes. Part I: imitation and utilization behavior: a neuropsychological study of 75 patients
Abstract
A type of pathological behavior, imitation behavior (IB), is newly described. In this behavior patients imitate the examiner's gestures, although not instructed to do so. Patients explain that they thought they had to imitate the examiner. IB is the first stage of utilization behavior (UB). Neuropsychological examination of 40 patients with IB, of 35 with UB, and of 50 disease controls demonstrates the existence of a frontal syndrome and two determining features of such behavior: dependence on (1) the social and (2) the physical environments. Loss of intellectual control was also required for the occurrence of such behavior. UB and/or IB were present in 96% of the 29 patients with focal lesions of the frontal lobes. Computed tomographic scans in 26 of these patients showed involvement of the inferior half of the anterior part of one or both frontal lobes. IB and UB are interpreted as release of parietal lobe activities, resulting from impairment of frontal lobe inhibition.
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Patients with brain damage who imitate uncontrollably imply that an active inhibitory mechanism normally controls automatic imitation.
“and the existence of patients who imitate uncontrollably after brain damage (Lhermitte et al., 1986; De Renzi et al., 1996) suggests that some active inhibitory mechanism is required to control automatic imitation.”
From To imitate or not: Avoiding imitation involves preparatory inhibition of motor resonance (2014) · cites this paper as Lhermitte et al., 1986
Imitative tendencies must be inhibited to prevent overt imitation.
“More specifically, imitative tendencies have to be inhibited to prevent overt imitation (Brass, Derrfuss, Cramon, Matthes-von Cramon, & von Cramon, 2003;De Renzi, Cavalleri, & Facchini, 1996;Lhermitte, Pillon, & Serdaru, 1986).”
From Automatic imitation of multiple agents: A computational model (2019) · cites this paper as Lhermitte, Pillon, & Serdaru, 1986
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“321 tendency to automatically imitate even when they are clearly instructed to not do so (Lhermitte et al., 1986).”
- Authors
- Lhermitte, F., Pillon, B., & Serdaru, M.
- Affiliations
- Inserm (FR)
- Corresponding author
- Lhermitte, F.
- Venue
- Annals of Neurology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 1986-04
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 326-334
- ISSN
- 0364-5134 (ISSN-L)
- 1531-8249
- OpenAlex
- W2126262915
- Cited by
- 658
- References
- 20
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 27 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 22 · 2013: 19 · 2012: 25
- FWCI
- 12.35
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Annals of Neurology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Historical and Modern Theater Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
- Keywords
- imitation, utilization behavior, frontal lobe lesions, frontal syndrome, human autonomy, intellectual control, social dependence, frontal lobe dysfunction
- MeSH terms
- Behavior, Brain Diseases, Cues, Environment, Female, Frontal Lobe, Humans, Imitative Behavior, Male, Middle Aged, Neuropsychology, Tomography, X-Ray Computed
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