Decision Making in Traumatic Brain Injury: Different Paradigms of Assessmen

Abstract

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is associated with significant cognitive impairment, especially in executive functions such as decision making (DM). However, the nature of such impairments has not been sufficiently investigated. The aim of the present review was to analyze current research on DM following TBI involving behavioral tests, describing and discussing the objectives, method, and findings of these studies. Articles published between 2003 and 2013 were retrieved from the Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE and PsycInfo databases using the keywords “decision making” AND “traumatic brain injury.” Sixteen of the 800 abstracts located were selected by two independent researchers for inclusion in the review. The most commonly used instruments for assessing TD were, in descending order: Iowa Gambling Task, Cambridge Gambling Task, Simple/Choice Reaction Time, Temporal Discounting Task and the Game of Dice Task. Although patients with TBI tended to exhibit DM impairments, two studies found no associations between DM impairment, TBI severity or the location of brain lesions. Limitations of the studies reviewed included the variability in time since TBI at assessment and the lack of control of psychopathological variables.