The frontal lobe is located at the front-most part of the brain, directly behind the forehead. It is responsible for many important functions, including:
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Voluntary movement: The frontal lobe controls intentional movements, such as moving your hand to pick something up or moving your legs to stand up and walk around. It also contains the brain area that controls the muscles you use for speaking.
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Executive functions: These include self-control, inhibitions, attention span, working memory, and the capacity to plan, organize, initiate, self-monitor, and control one’s responses in order to achieve a goal.
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Social understanding: The frontal lobe controls your understanding of social norms and helps determine what you should and shouldn’t do or say. It is also vital for empathy and forming personality.
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Learning and recalling information: The frontal lobe is responsible for your brain’s ability to process and learn new information for later use. It also helps retrieve information later.
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Problem-solving and abstract thought: The frontal lobe plays a key role in future planning, including self-management and decision-making. It is also involved in judgment, creativity, and abstract thought.
Damage to the frontal lobe can result in a wide variety of symptoms, such as loss of simple movement of various body parts, inability to plan a sequence of complex movements, loss of spontaneity in interacting with others, inability to express language, and difficulty in interpreting feedback from the environment.
