Effects of Brain Damage
Phineas Gage was a railroad construction foreman in the United States at the age of 25 years. His story is much remembered for his survival of an accident after a tamping iron rod fell on his head, destroying the left frontal lobe of his brain. This accident later affected his personality and behavior for 12 years remaining in his life. His friends could not recognize him anymore. Phineas case was the first one to show how brain damage affects individual personality as well as how it induces mental changes (Brown, 2015). Before the accident, he was regarded as being hardworking, a smart businessman, energetic, and responsible person. The study of the adverse effects of brain damage is vital since it shows how to causes mental changes and a person’s character.
The mental changes that occurred after the accident was more dramatic than anything else reported in his life. After the accident, his memory and general intelligence were impaired. His intelligence and animal propensity dramatically changed after the crash (Brown, 2015). He started to be fitful, irreverent (lacking respect for people or dangerous things), having inappropriate sexual behavior, irresponsible, lying, showing little manifestations to his friends and being impatient to his friends’ advice. Gage’s friends looked down upon his personality changed.
Gage’s accident led to the damage of frontal lobe in the brain. Biologically, the person’s ability to make proper choices and recognize the consequences, are severely impaired after frontal lobe is destroyed (Brown, 2015). It is proven by biologists that, damage to the frontal lobe increases irritability, that includes the change in a person’s mood and inability to regulate behavior (Brown, 2015). Gage’s personality changed since he could not control his attitude and behavior.
Following the study of Gage’s accident, the aspect of being hardworking is appreciated in his personality before the occurrence of the crash (Brown, 2015). This is because, by being diligent, he was granted the opportunity to be the foreman in the railroad construction to lead the fellow friends. In this case study, it is observed that brain damage can affect the ability of a person to make good choices (Brown, 2015). This is seen when Gage’s personality changed and started being irresponsible, which he previously did not.
Conclusion
Brain damage affects a person’s personality and changes in behaviors. It makes a person to lack the ability to think and make correct choices in his life. Gage’s personality changes made his friends look down upon him since they had seen him with different characters that he did not portray previously. After the accident occurred, Gage’s memory and general intelligence were impaired