In addition to changes in temperature regulation, sleep, and coordination, alcoholism-related brain changes can cause abnormalities in mental functioning that are detectable using specialized neuropsychological tests. Behavioral neurologists and neuropsychologists use these sensitive tests to measure both the obvious and the subtle consequences of brain damage. Results of the tests often show changes in emotions and personality as well as impaired perception, learning, and memory (i.e., cognitive abilities) after damage to particular brain systems (see Evert and Oscar-Berman 1995).
