Assessment of Stability of Behavioral and Neural Measures of Attention Networks Across Multiple Sessions

The purpose of this research study is to learn more about the stability over multiple recording sessions of brainwave activity during a computerized task that measures different types of attention.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Stability of Attentional Networks Over Multiple Sessions of Computerized Task
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Attention Network Task

Detailed Description

Attention is the backbone of cognitive systems and is requisite for other cognitive processes vital to everyday functioning, such as memory, problem solving, language skills, and the cognitive control of behavior. Impairments in attention can result from a variety of factors, such as brain injury, and neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as various psychopathologies. A prominent multi-component model of visuospatial attention developed by Posner and colleagues conceptualizes visuospatial attention as an "organ system" comprised of three independent, yet interactive networks which include: 1) Alerting, the generation and maintenance of a vigilant state that facilitates the processing of an upcoming stimulus, 2) Orienting, the disengagement, shifting, and reallocation of attention to a spatial location, and 3) Executive control, the resolution of conflict among competing mutually-exclusive responses that enables selective focus. To aid in understanding of attention, the Attention Network Test (ANT) was developed as a brief computerized measure of the efficiency of each of these networks and has been extensively used in a variety of healthy and clinical populations. Several studies have examined differences in ERPs during the ANT in healthy aging and clinical populations such as ADHD, schizophrenia, and traumatic brain injury (TBI) but have not conducted repeated sessions of the task to evaluate changes over time. While the ANT has been shown to be robustly sensitive to a range of cognitive and/or neuropsychological disorders, the reliability of the ANT across multiple sessions, particularly in terms of neural activity measures, has not been previously examined. An important focus of the proposed research regards the stability of neural measures reflecting activity of each of three different attention networks. One method for examining neural activity involves time locked electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings of brain activity or scalp-recorded brain event-related potentials (ERPs). ERPs can provide insights into the neural correlates of cognitive processes elicited by an experimental task as well as the neural time course. Particularly relevant to this study, the visual N1, a negative-going ERP deflection occurring ~150-200 milliseconds (ms) post-stimulus. N1 amplitude is considered to index attentional allocation. Additionally, a later-occurring positive-going deflection occurring ~300-ms post-stimulus, P3, reflects processes associated with stimulus evaluation and categorization. Previous research in our lab has shown that N1 and P3 are differentially sensitive to attention network functioning probed using the ANT in neurologically-healthy controls and are sensitive to attentional impairment in TBI survivors. Thus, the study team will focus on the stability of N1 and P3 waveforms across the 4 sessions. Previous studies have examined reliability and stability of behavioral measures of the ANT by evaluating the reliability of reaction time (RT) and error rates over multiple sessions. Ishigami reported good temporal stability of network scores across 10 sessions, although some practice effects were seen in orienting and executive-control attention networks. Importantly, no prior work has examined the temporal stability of ERPs with repeated ANT performance, which is among the primary aims of the proposed research. Finally, in an exploratory manner, the investigators will extend findings from one of our earlier studies demonstrating altitudinal attentional biases for upper vertical space in healthy participants and the absence of such biases in TBI survivors. Specifically, the investigators will examine which of three attentional networks are sensitive to such biases in healthy controls and determine the ERP signatures of these biases.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 16

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Florida
    • Gainesville, Florida, United States, 32611
      • College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 40 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

Healthy Controls

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• right-hand dominant
• Native English speakers
• with normal or corrected-to-normal vision

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not right-hand dominant
• Does not speak english as a native language
• No history of neurological disorder such as stroke, epilepsy or chronic seizure disorder, traumatic brain injury or concussion, psychiatric disorder such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression or anxiety disorder, any psychiatric inpatient hospitalization for any of these disorders, or previously diagnosed learning disability
• Currently taking any prescribed medications for anxiety, depression, or seizures
• Alcohol use more than 3 days a week

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Controls; Participants will include 15 healthy men and women aged 18-40 years, right-hand dominant, Native English speakers, with normal or corrected-to-normal vision.	Behavioral: Attention Network Task; The Attention Network Test (ANT) is a computerized cognitive task designed to efficiently probe three independent but interactive attentional networks (alerting, orienting, executive control) in a single task paradigm.; Other Names: Electroencephalography

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in the temporal stability of behavioral measures of three attention networks: change in reaction time across four sessions	The Attention Network Task (ANT) combines a covert cuing paradigm with a classic flanker task to behaviorally probe independent but interactive components of attention. These distinct components of attention are: alerting, orienting, and executive control. These facets of attention will be assessed at 4 time points scheduled 1 week apart as follows: ANT Alerting Reaction Time score, ANT Orienting Reaction Time score and ANT Executive-control Reaction Time score. The lower the score the faster the reaction time.	Week 1; Week 2; Week 3; Week 4
Change in the temporal stability of neural measures of three attention networks using scalp-recorded electroencephalography (EEG)	Scalp-recorded brain event related potentials (ERP) will be acquired from 64 EEG sensors while participants perform the ANT reflecting alerting, orienting, and executive control components of attention. These facets of attention will be assessed at 4 time points scheduled 1 week apart. ANT alerting will be interrogated by examining the amplitude of the P300 component of the ERP in microvolts, as will orienting and executive-control.	Week 1; Week 2; Week 3; Week 4

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Florida
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: William Perlstein, PhD, University of Florida

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 31, 2019
• Primary Completion (Actual): November 8, 2019
• Study Completion (Actual): November 8, 2019

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 19, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 25, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): July 26, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 24, 2020
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 21, 2020
• Last Verified: February 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: cognitive process; visuospatial attention
• Other Study ID Numbers: IRB201600188; 0217BBRC-02 (Other Grant/Funding Number: *NF/SGVHS Malcom Randall VA Medical Cent)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No