Neuropsychological assessment studies the relationship between the brain and behavior. Its objective is to identify cognitive deficits and/or disorders and behavioral alterations that may result from brain dysfunctions or lesions.
In childhood, specialists in psychiatry analyze two cases, that of subjects who present difficulties in maturational development and that of those who, after suffering a pathological accident, suffer sequelae that alter this development. In both cases, basic learning functions are altered and the children’s skills are delayed.
In the case of subjects with impaired neuro-maturational development, parents are not usually able to detect specific difficulties until their poor academic performance alerts teachers. This is not usually the case when the brain damage appears after normal development, as the loss of already acquired skills is more evident.
How does neuropsychological assessment work?
Neuropsychological assessment in childhood has different characteristics from that of adults, since developmental and maturational aspects must be taken into account. The acquisition of higher psychological functions is related to brain development, but in turn the use of these functions will modulate the organ’s functional systems. This is because the brain is a very plastic organ, capable of continually adapting and reorganizing itself when the demands of the environment require it. Although this plasticity is present throughout life, it is greatest during childhood and adolescence. Therefore, neuropsychological alterations at these ages are more serious because they affect basic functions for development.