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RésuméDans le cadre des 40 ans de la SNLF, Jean-Luc Nespoulous et Francis Eustache proposent une réflexion croisée sur les apports significatifs de la clinique et de la recherche au domaine toujours en expansion de la neuropsychologie. Si le premier, neuropsycholinguiste, insiste particulièrement sur l’apport des modèles théoriques et sur les liens étroits entre neuropsychologie et linguistique, le second, neuropsychologue, s’appuie sur des exemples cliniques dans le domaine de la mémoire pour expliciter l’apport précieux de l’intérêt pour les patients à la compréhension des mécanismes neuropsychologiques. Tous deux cependant se rejoignent sur l’importance de la complémentarité entre recherche et clinique et sur la nécessité d’une caractérisation toujours plus fine des phénomènes, possible uniquement dans un cadre interdisciplinaire, afin de poursuivre le chemin vers une meilleure connaissance de la pensée et des comportements humains.

Respective contributions of clinical practice and research to the field of neuropsychologyIn the context of the 40th anniversary conference of the French-speaking society for neuropsychology (SNLF), two former presidents of the society offer a crossed reflection on the respective contribution of research and clinical practice to the ever-growing field of neuropsychology. The neuropsycholinguist Jean-Luc Nespoulous focuses on the importance of theoretical frameworks and models to improve the understanding of his field of research, and on the close links between linguistics and neuropsychology. He pleads for a perpetual reassessment of methods and the underlying models, with a focus on more ecological assessments, through bilinguals’ studies, situated cognition and ecological testing. The neuropsychologist Francis Eustache unravels the precious contribution of case studies to the understanding of neuropsychological phenomena, especially memory impairment. He advocates for a co-construction and confirmation of models through research based on both practitioners and patients’ experiences. Moreover, his talk points out how clinical neuropsychology can bring up or interrogate social and research preoccupations, and vice versa, through the example of post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). However, both speakers agree on the importance of the complementary nature of research and clinical practice, and on the necessity to better characterize the numerous phenomena involved. According to the speakers, this would only be possible through interdisciplinary approaches, which would allow us to further our understanding of human thought processes and behaviors.