Prospective Memory: A Neuropsychological Study

To examine the neuropsychology of prospective remembering, older adults were divided preexperimentally into 4 groups on the basis of their scores on 2 composite measures: one assessing frontal lobe function and the other assessing medial temporal lobe function. The groups reflected the factorial combination of high and low functioning for each neuropsychological system, and they were tested on an event-based laboratory prospective memory task. High-functioning frontal participants showed better prospective remembering than low-functioning frontal participants. There was no significant difference in prospective memory performance attributable to medial temporal functioning. The results support the theoretical notion that frontal lobe processes play a key role in prospective remembering. Discussion focuses on the particular components of prospective memory performance that frontal lobes might mediate.