Enhancing Behavior and Brain Response to Visual Targets Using a Computer Game

August 4, 2026 updated by: Yale University

Participants will play a computer game that is controlled by their gaze patterns and designed to direct attention their attention to specific on-screen targets. Visual attention to targets will be rewarded. Both visual behavior and brain response will be recorded during game play.

It is hypothesized that that, over the course of the game, relative to baseline, participants will show (a) increased looking to targets, (b) decreased response time to targets, and (c) enhanced, more efficient neural response to visual cues. It is hypothesized that clinical variability will associate with visual attention and brain response.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

100

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Connecticut
      • New Haven, Connecticut, United States, 06520
        • Yale Child Study Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Able to participate in an eye-tracking experiment
  • Able to participate in an EEG experiment

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Sensory or physical impairment that would preclude completion of protocol
  • Participants taking prescription medications that may affect cognitive processes
  • Participants reporting significant head trauma or history of seizures

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Game
Participants will play a video game directing their gaze to on-screen targets.
Behavioral: Game

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
EEG brain response to targets
Time Frame: Measures will be recorded for the duration of their visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be recorded for the duration of their visit, an expected average of 3 hours.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Visual attention to targets as measured by eye-tracking
Time Frame: Measures will be recorded for the duration of their visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be recorded for the duration of their visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition
Time Frame: Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule
Time Frame: Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Differential Abilities Scale
Time Frame: Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, Second Edition
Time Frame: Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Social Anxiety Scale for Children, Revised
Time Frame: Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.
Measures will be collected during visit, an expected average of 3 hours.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Yale University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: James McPartland, Yale University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

April 1, 2014

Primary Completion (Actual)

July 18, 2017

Study Completion (Actual)

July 18, 2017

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 5, 2014

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 16, 2014

First Posted (Estimated)

April 21, 2014

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 4, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 14-10788

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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