Anxiety, Anxiety Disorders
Conditions
Keywords
anxiety, attention bias modification, computer
Brief summary
This project seeks to identify neural mechanisms underlying the tendency for anxious individuals to pay more attention to threatening information than to other types of information. A computerized treatment designed to train individuals to reduce their attention towards threat will be tested, with a focus on understanding the aspects of brain function that predict response to the treatment. This work could ultimately lead to the ability to treat anxiety more effectively by directly targeting the aspects of brain function that are altered in a given patient.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAttention Bias Modification
Excessive attention to threat is theorized to be a critical contributor to chronic anxiety symptoms and related negative health consequences. Attention Bias Modification, which directly targets this mechanism, is a highly cost-effective intervention with growing empirical support for its potential efficacy in clinically anxious populations.
BEHAVIORALNeutral Training
A control version of computerized attention training.
Sponsors
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
University of Pittsburgh
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Outcomes Assessor)
Intervention model description
Completer analyses focused on prediction of active ABM outcomes using neural measures. Control arm used for effect size comparisons.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 55 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Participants will: 1. be between the ages of 18 and 55 years, 2. score \>45 on the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-trait form. 3. score \>=75th percentile on the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0
Exclusion criteria
1. Current medication or Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for anxiety or depression; 2. Failure to meet standard Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) inclusion criteria: those who have cardiac pacemakers, neural pacemakers, surgical clips in the brain or blood vessels, surgically implanted metal plates, screws or pins, cochlear implants, Intrauterine Devices, metal braces, or other metal objects in their body, especially in the eye. If the subject has any metal or implants in the body they must be deemed safe by the MRI Research Center's safety screening procedure prior to enrollment. Dental fillings do not present a problem. Plastic or removable dental appliances do not require exclusion. Pregnancy, determined by pregnancy tests on females. 3. currently suicidal or at risk for harm to self or others, 4. visual disturbance (\<20/40 as per the Snellen test, corrective lenses allowed) 5. \<6th grade reading level as per the Wide Range Achievement Test 6. presence of bipolar, psychotic, autism spectrum, substance dependence, or primary depressive disorder 7. positive urine drug test
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| CAPS--Hypervigilance item | 1 month |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Mood and Anxiety Symptoms Questionnaire | 1 month | — |
| Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) | 1 month | — |
| Attentional bias towards threat (Performance-based assessment of attentional bias towards threat based on reaction times and eye tracking) | immediate | Performance-based assessment of attentional bias towards threat based on reaction times and eye tracking |
| Penn State Worry Questionnaire | 1 month | — |
| Speilberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory | 1 month | — |
| Beck Anxiety Inventory | 1 month | — |
| Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale | 1 month | — |
| World Health Organization Disability Assessment Scale (WHODAS) | 1 month | — |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging | 1 month | (collected post-treatment in subsample of active arm only) |
| Pupillometry | 1 month | — |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed