ABSTRACT
The recognition that most laboratory tests of “planning” ability, such as the TOH and TOL, may actually assess different cognitive processes from those necessary for performance in real-world planning situations was reflected in the call from Shallice and Burgess (1991) for the development of “quantifiable analogues of . . . open-ended multiple subgoal situations” similar to those that are encountered in everyday life (p. 728). A number of recent studies have attempted to utilize such analogues of real-world planning situations in studies of patients with prefrontal damage, and have provided further insights into the brain regions necessary for successful planning abilities. For example, Miotto and Morris (1998), using a Virtual Planning Test (VPT) which required the planning and execution of a set of target activities that were to take place over a four-day period, found that patients with frontal lobe lesions tended to select inappropriate activities in relation to the current context. We will call the conclusion from this finding Conclusion 9.
